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| ID No : | 626 Edit | Title: | Thermal Wadis and Compact Rovers: Creating an Affordable Lunar Infrastructure to Enable Resource Evaluations and Technology Demonstrations |
| Summary / Review : |
Rovers for surface prospecting
"Many in the space resources community, including scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs, economists and others, have arrived at the conclusion that identifying, locating, harvesting and processing of resources on the moon is possibly the most compelling theme around which to discuss why, when and how humans should return to the moon. While it is clear from ongoing data coming from recent lunar probes that promising resources including water and other volatile species are present, the true abundance and accessibility of these materials cannot be quantitatively established without substantial and widespread in-situ prospecting assays and demonstrations of mining and processing - all in the challenging lunar environment. The potential significance of these resources is clear to lunar and planetary science, but also to the economic sustainability of human space travel to both the moon and beyond. Consequently, robotic "ground truthing" of orbital observations is essential to adequately informed determinations about the value of sending humans back to the moon. Because it is unlikely that one or two robotic resource prospecting and processing missions could adequately evaluate the resource potential of the moon, advocates of completing a resource mapping must consider affordable ways this can be achieved. Improving lunar prospecting productivity must involve surviving the thermal challenges on the moon, especially the cold lunar darkness, and reducing the unit cost and size of individual rover-based assets to enable economies of scale in production and transportation." (Author's abstract) |
| Author(s) : |
Sacksteder, Kurt R.; Wegeng, Robert S., [Glenn Research Center] |
| Publication Date: | 2010 |
| Category(s) : |
Exploration and resources / Lunar / Probes |
| Progress Type: | A ( A=Analysis only, D=Design, T=Testing, C=Completed or Commercial product ) |
| Web URL : |
http://hdl.handle.net/2060/20110012546
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| PERMANENT code(s) : | L,U |
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(Explanation of the last 3 rows above) |
In the row above, there are up to 4 possibilities: U = URL you can click on to get a copy instantly from another source on the internet, or request it from that source D = Downloadable from PERMANENT (such as because no other URL known...) L = LAN copy, PERMANENT has a digital copy but not downloadable from our website P = Paper copy in the PERMANENT office Typically, only 0 to 3 methods are available. |
| NTRS : | 20110012546 |
| Submitted by : | MEP |
| Comments: |
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