Luna Gaia: The Green Side of the Moon
by Collin Dunn, Corvallis, OR, USA on 01. 7.08
Here's one for the apocalyptic, techno-nerdy and ecological design enthusiast alike: "Luna Gaia," a lunar habitat designed international team of scientists, engineers and grad students that'll make dwelling on the moon not only almost entirely sustainable but borderline cushy and even fun. Fresh vegetables and fish, spacious rooms (by moon standards, anyway) and clean drinking water are just a few of the amenities that await dwellers of this green moon unit.
The self-sustaining habitat, which harvests solar energy and reuses all of its waste, was conceived and designed by a group attending a summer-long Space Studies Program at the International Space University in Strasbourg, France. Thanks to Google's new Lunar X Prize and an audience at NASA, Luna Gaia is proving to be more than just a pipe-dreamy academic exercise; in the past year, the team has presented the plan to several space programs, including NASA, which may incorporate some of the ideas into its own lunar outpost, planned for sometime after 2020.
According to the plans, the Luna Gaia community will be divided into linked, studio-apartment-size pods. Nestled in a crater, to limit its inhabitants' exposure to solar radiation, it would include private rooms and social areas, labs and exercise rooms, and greenhouses in which astronauts could grow the food necessary for a balanced diet. Filters, plants and bacteria will turn wash water and urine into potable water. Algae and other greenery turn carbon dioxide into oxygen. Overall, the group estimates, these systems would make Luna Gaia 90 to 95 percent sustainable, meaning fewer service trips, longer visits and a clearer conscience.
Based on this preliminary design, Popular Science estimates there'd be "6 Steps to Clean Lunar Living:
FIND A BIG CRATER
Designs call for Luna Gaia to be built in a mile-wide crater near the moon's north pole. The crater wall casts a shadow that protects the astronauts from solar radiation.
GO SOLAR
A dozen mirrors, each 100 feet wide, sit on top of the crater's rim, an area that's nearly constantly bathed in sunlight. These direct light onto another set of mirrors that focus the beam on a water supply, creating steam that drives a turbine and generates electricity for the base.
INFLATE YOUR BEDROOM
Luna Gaia will consist of several inflatable modules made of Vectran, a flexible material that's more durable than Kevlar and can be compressed in transit to help keep delivery costs down. The greenhouses will be transparent, but living quarters will be covered with a layer of regolith, or lunar soil, to provide added protection from radiation.
GO FISHING
Tilapia are high in protein and thrive in a crowded tank. Astronauts will also dine on hydroponically grown wheat and a variety of vegetables, such as spinach and potatoes. The same algae that cleans up the crew's water will be a good source of protein.
URINATE OFTEN
Urine runs first through an ion-exchange filter that removes some contaminants and then into the algae tanks, where the algae drink it up and release water vapor that a condenser liquifies. This water either runs back to the crew quarters for washing or is further purified to make it drinkable.
REUSE EVERYTHING
Several different strains of bacteria break down feces into water, minerals and ammonium. These materials are converted into nutrient-rich fertilizer and pumped into the plant, fish and algae chambers."
Far out. We've seen examples of people who practice and real life examples of the promise of ecological design, so we know this stuff (theoretically) works, at least on this planet. Perhaps we won't need hindsight to realize this in 2020. ::Popular Science via ::Geekologie
Looks like an arcology on the moon to me! Not the hyper-building type, but self-sustaining architecture meets ecology on a smaller scale just the same.
But seriously, lets build it on Earth first huh? I think we can do it, but unless the military has this problem licked and isn't talking about it, the public versions have been mild successes at best.
- Dave S
So are we assuming we'll have shields by the time this is built to protect the base from meteors. Is that unkown variable factored into the power requirements?
Meteors don't burn up in the moons atmosphere, which why "The moon is made of cheese." (Reference to the cratered surface).
If your looking for something a bit more realistic, you would build a bunker type facility, to take advantage of the lunar soil insulationative properties. The solar mirrors would probably be cost prohibitive, due to lunar dust covering the mirrors and meteors.
As far as power is concerned, the most reliable and therefore safest option is nuclear, a self contained nuclear battery sealed in lunar soil would provide constant power, which would be necessary for survival.
If you want a testing ground to build a prototype, try replacing on of our research stations in Antarctica.
So are we assuming we'll have shields by the time this is built to protect the base from meteors. Is that unkown variable factored into the power requirements?
Meteors don't burn up in the moons atmosphere, which why "The moon is made of cheese." (Reference to the cratered surface).
If your looking for something a bit more realistic, you would build a bunker type facility, to take advantage of the lunar soil insulationative properties. The solar mirrors would probably be cost prohibitive, due to lunar dust covering the mirrors and meteors.
As far as power is concerned, the most reliable and therefore safest option is nuclear, a self contained nuclear battery sealed in lunar soil would provide constant power, which would be necessary for survival.
If you want a testing ground to build a prototype, try replacing on of our research stations in Antarctica.
So are we assuming we'll have shields by the time this is built to protect the base from meteors. Is that unkown variable factored into the power requirements?
Meteors don't burn up in the moons atmosphere, which why "The moon is made of cheese." (Reference to the cratered surface).
If your looking for something a bit more realistic, you would build a bunker type facility, to take advantage of the lunar soil insulationative properties. The solar mirrors would probably be cost prohibitive, due to lunar dust covering the mirrors and meteors.
As far as power is concerned, the most reliable and therefore safest option is nuclear, a self contained nuclear battery sealed in lunar soil would provide constant power, which would be necessary for survival.
If you want a testing ground to build a prototype, try replacing on of our research stations in Antarctica.
the moon is made of cheese.
Lunar soil (regolith) contains Helium-3, a non-radioactive isotope of Helium which is very rare on Earth. The significance of He-3 is that it can be used as a second-generation fusion power source. He-3 is embedded in the upper layer of the lunar soil by solar winds. These same solar winds on Earth are reflected by earth's magnetism so He-3 is rarely found on Earth, but the Moon has no atmosphere so these solar winds blow over the surface of the moon depositing Helium in the lunar soil.
Now to be fair, only 0.01 ppm of lunar regolith is He-3. This is a low amount but I've heard the total quantity of He-3 found on the moon could power Earth's economy for about 1000 years if used for fusion power generation. This sounds very juicy when compared to how long the fossil fuel era has lasted.
As it turns out, lunar soil is also very very rich in oxygen and there are known methods which are effective at retrieving this oxygen. I don't think I need to go into details about how useful it is to have a large supply of oxygen orbiting earth. I will mention one good use of that oxygen. Rocket fuel is 85% oxygen (the largest tank in the space shuttle is filled with oxygen). Transporting lunar oxygen to a low orbit around Earth will facilitate space travel and further space exploration without spending relatively large amounts of money.
Man is returning to the moon around the year 2020 and China, Russia and Europe have plans of getting there along with the USA. Lunar resources, my friends, is what future wars will be fought over.