{"id":21836,"date":"2020-05-13T19:12:29","date_gmt":"2020-05-13T23:12:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=21836"},"modified":"2020-05-13T19:12:29","modified_gmt":"2020-05-13T23:12:29","slug":"space-settlement-roundup-may-13-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hobbyspace.com\/Blog\/?p=21836","title":{"rendered":"Space settlement roundup \u2013 May.13.2020"},"content":{"rendered":"

A\u00a0 sampling of recent articles, videos, and images related to human expansion into the solar system (see also previous space settlement postings<\/a>):<\/p>\n

** NIAC grant for Aqua Factorem<\/a>, an <\/strong>Ultra Low-Energy Lunar Water Extraction system<\/em><\/a><\/strong>. This approach, briefly mentioned in an earlier roundup<\/a>, takes<\/p>\n

advantage of the processing that the unique lunar geology has already performed. Micrometeoroid bombardment has already broken most solid material in the upper part of the regolith into fine grains. This includes solid material of all compositions, including the ice, which is as hard as granite at PSR [Permanently Shadowed Regions] temperatures and is therefore essentially another type of rock. These ice grains are intermixed with all the other minerals, so a simple, ultra-low-energy grain-sorting process can extract the ice without phase change.<\/em><\/p>\n

As another benefit it can extract the 1 wt% free metal known to be in lunar soil, again with very little energy. The ice can then be hauled to the chemical processing unit in solid phase and converted into rocket propellant. We estimate the 800 kW power needed for thermal extraction can be reduced to less than 100 watts using the new method. This affects the entire architecture of the mining operation producing extensive economic benefit, which we will quantify in this study.<\/em><\/p>\n

We will study it in the context of a mission to mine propellants commercially for space tugs that boost commercial communication satellites from Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) to Geostationary Orbit (GEO) then return to the lunar surface for refueling. This simple architecture requires the minimum number of in-space elements, and notably does not require an in-space propellant depot, so it provides the lowest cost and lowest risk startup for a commercial operation. The study will also test the innovative Aqua Factorem process through laboratory experiments, and this will produce basic insights into the handling of lunar resources.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
“Graphic depicting the Aqua Factorem: Ultra Low-Energy Lunar Water Extraction concept.” Credits: Philip Metzger<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

See also<\/p>\n