Category Archives: Moonbase

Tuesday / 30 April 2024

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SpaceX Presents Plan to Use Starship as Lunar Base Construction Element

14 companies selected to develop conceptual framework for Moon commercialization under <US$1M DARPA 10-Year Lunar Architecture Capability Study (LunA-10) contracts deliver proposal briefs at Lunar Surface Innovation Consortium Spring meeting at JHU/APL, with final reports expected in June; SpaceX study envisions lunar base infrastructure established with 3 Starship landings: Utility Starship as power / communications hub, Rolling Stock Starship for rovers and construction machines, Habitation Starship for crew living quarters; Company projects Starship payload cost to lunar surface to drop from <$10,000/kg to ~$1,000/kg after 2030

 
Credits: SpaceX, NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 26-29 Jan 2024

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Stability of Moon South Pole Under Scrutiny Ahead of Artemis Human Lunar Landings

NASA-supported study Tectonics and Seismicity of the Lunar South Polar Region surveys recent LRO and historical Apollo Passive Seismic Network data to analyze 15 lobate thrust fault scarps, thought to be caused by interior cooling and Earth tidal forces, in the MSP region including in de Gerlache Rim, 1 of 13 candidate sites for Artemis 3; Modelling of associated shallow moonquakes (SMQ) indicate shaking up to 50km from epicenters, a safety concern especially for areas such as Shackleton crater which may be susceptible to regolith landslides; Further insight to be gained when Farside Seismic Suite is carried on Draper Series-2 lander to Schrödinger basin NET 2025 under CLPS

Credits: NASA / LRO

Tuesday / 7 Nov 2023

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NASA and Boeing Making Progress on Artemis Moon Rocket Block 1B Configuration

Despite concerns from NASA Office of Inspector General over supply chain transparency, Artemis team continues to advance SLS, with major work on LOX tank weld confidence article (5 of 7 such test pieces) for SLS exploration upper stage proceeding at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans; SLS Block 1B with exploration upper stage / Orion crew capsule features 40% additional payload capacity vs Block 1 (27 / 38 t) as is slated to carry 4 astronauts to Gateway station (including 1 ESA astronaut) and 2 to lunar surface via SpaceX HLS during Artemis 4 NET September 2028

Credits: NASA / Michael DeMocker, Boeing

Tuesday / 29 Aug 2023

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BRICS Nations Consider Establishment of Space Exploration Consortium

5-member BRICS economic bloc consisting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (with Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and UAE set to formally join 1 Jan 2024) may cooperate on space development per comments given by India PM and Foreign Secretary in the wake of the historic landing of Chandrayaan-3 at Shiv Shakti, ~20° from the lunar south pole; Existing BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation could serve as ‘base layer’ from which consortium may grow per Secretary Kwatra; Collaboration between China-led ILRS and Artemis Accords signatory India may accelerate USA Moon action

Pictured: India Prime Minister Narendra Modi (T), India Foreign Secretary Shri Vinay Kwatra (B); Credits: ILOA, Twitter / @ani_digital, India Ministry of External Affairs

USA July 4th Holiday Edition
Mon-Wed / 3-5 July 2023

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USA@250: Ready for Multi World Civilization?

Artemis 3 touchdown NLT 4 July 2026 brings challenges – Moonsuit, lander, fuel depot, funding; and consequences – first women, first person of color to advance gender, racial equality – in situ on the surface of Moon / in space and on Earth; International, economic egalitarian considerations likely to prompt new social movements, reevaluation of existing norms as sustainable lunar communities are established; Principles of autonomy and self-determination articulated 4 July 1776 in Declaration of Independence may inform both Artemis and International Lunar Research Station constituents, in peace for all

Credits: National Archives, SpaceX

Friday / 30 June 2023

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4 Teams Advance in NASA Competition to Provide Energy Solutions for Lunar Night Survival

Watts on the Moon, a NASA STMD Centennial Challenges program, to award US$400,000 / ea to Phase 2, Level 2 winners who will go on to compete in Phase 2, Level 3: UC Santa Barbara Experimental Cosmology (High Efficiency Long-Range Power Solution), Michigan Technological University Planetary Surface Technology Development Lab (Tethered Mechanism for Persistent Energy Storage and Transmission), Electric Moon (Power the Moon with GaN Multilevel Converters), Orbital Mining Corporation (No Replacement For DC-placement); 2 finalists will have technology tested in vacuum chamber simulating lunar conditions and split $1.5M prize NET 2024

Pictured: MSFC Public Affairs Officer Jonathan Deal, Centennial Challenges Program Manager Denise Morris; Credits: NASA

Friday / 23 June 2023

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India Joins Artemis as International Lunar Research Station Builds its Coalition for Sustained Moon Activity

India and Equador are the latest signatories to USA-led Artemis Accords, bringing total national membership to 27; ISRO-NASA human spaceflight cooperation plan to be detailed by end of 2023 including ISRO vyomanaut training at JSC, ISRO ISS mission & NISAR launch NET 2024 – partnership “spans the seas to the stars” per joint statement; ILRS reportedly welcoming new partner nations Bangladesh, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru, Thailand (of Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization) and UAE (1st nation with dual Artemis / ILRS membership) while talks ongoing with 10+ other countries

Credits: NASA, ISRO, ILRS, CNSA, Roscosmos, Twiiter / @htTweets
 

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 2-5 June 2023

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Chinese on Moon 2020s?

China Manned Space Agency Deputy Director Lin Xiqiang reaffirms national commitment to crewed lunar landings in 2020s, echoing similar declaration by Wu Weiren, CLEP Chief Designer in late April; NASA Administrator Bill Nelson warns of territorialism at MSP, expresses desire to “preserve those potential [water] reserves for the international community” in interview with Spanish media; India, Russia, Japan and USA set to join China in operating robotically on Moon in summer / autumn 2023 with Chandrayaan-3 launch NET July 12, Luna-25 and SLIM NET August, IM and Astrobotic CLPS landers NET Q3

Credits: ILRS, OpenAI, People’s Daily / TikTok

Friday / 27 Jan 2023

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13 Proposed Artemis III Landing Sites to be Scrutinized at Virtual Lunar Surface Science Workshop (LSSW)

With institutional support from LPI, USRA, NASA / convened by Samuel Lawrence (JSC) and Noah Petro (GSFC), LSSW The First Steps in a Bold New Era of Human Discovery: Candidate Artemis III Landing Sites will be held online 4-5 April; Locations under consideration are within Artemis Polar Exploration Zone (poleward of 84° S); Artemis 3 to conduct sample collection over ~6 days of surface operations, ≤4 EVAs within 2 km of SpaceX Starship lander; Abstacts due 1 March and will be available for review 21 March

Credits: NASA, LPI

Tuesday / 11 Oct 2022

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Cislunar Development Policy to be Discussed at Beyond Earth Symposium 12-13 Oct

34 featured speakers in space policy, academia and industry to consider guidelines conducive to long-term human community & economy in space and on / around Moon at hybrid conference hosted by University of Arizona Center for Outreach & Collaboration in Washington DC; Toward a Cislunar Ecosystem with Human Presence panel on 13 Oct will be moderated by (L-R) Laura Forczyk (Beyond Earth Institute), feature speakers Scott Pace (George Washington University), Paul Stimers (K&L Gates), Vishnu Reddy (University of Arizona LPL), John Mankins (Moon Village Association) and Angeliki Kapoglou (ESA); In-person ($345) and online ($49) registration available here

Credits: BE, University of Arizona