Why can’t we just put a space station on the Moon already?
The tyranny of distance
Food and power
We also need to think about what astronauts staying at the space station would need. The most important things would be a food supply and electricity to power equipment, food production and breathable air.
Scientists have been working on how to grow food in space. On board the International Space Station, astronauts are carrying out experiments to try togrow vegetablesusing soil pillows. Another option would be to grow plantsusing hydroponics, which means that the plants grow in water, not soil.
Getting power on the Moon would be more complicated. The best way would be to use solar energy from the Sun. However, the Moon rotates every 28 days. This means that a space station in a fixed position on the Moon would be in the sun for 14 days and then darkness for 14 days – and without light, solar-powered equipment wouldn’t work without a big improvement in battery storage.
One way to get round this problem would be to build the space station at either the north or south pole of the Moon, and raise the solar panels above the surface. The panels would get constant sunlight as they can rotate and not be blocked by the planet at all.
Alternatively, we might not even need a base on the surface of the Moon at all. Instead, Nasa is planning to build a satellite toorbit the moon. Rockets launching from the lunar surface use more fuel to escape the Moon’s gravity, but this would not be so difficult from a satellite. This means it would be even better than a base on the Moon; a gateway for missions heading further into the Solar System.
This article byIan Whittaker, Senior Lecturer in Physics,Nottingham Trent University, is republished fromThe Conversationunder a Creative Commons license. Read theoriginal article.
Story byThe Conversation
An independent news and commentary website produced by academics and journalists.An independent news and commentary website produced by academics and journalists.
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.
