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Lunar Geology Traverse

Lunar Geology Traverse. Kimberly Albarico ASTE 527 Monday December 15, 2008. Through the Looking Glass. Return humankind to the moon Establish semi-permanent structures Give back to the scientific community Observatories Traverse with multiple stops for geological studies

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Lunar Geology Traverse

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  1. Lunar Geology Traverse Kimberly Albarico ASTE 527 Monday December 15, 2008

  2. Through the Looking Glass • Return humankind to the moon • Establish semi-permanent structures • Give back to the scientific community • Observatories • Traverse with multiple stops for geological studies • Each phase studies additional areas • Invaluable experience for future Mars projects Lunar Geology

  3. Lunar Geology • Discover location of resources for ISRU • Lunar formation • Earth and other planetary meteorite remains • Origin of life/Astrobiology • History of planetary formation • Samples for lunar machinery development South Pole Region Source: Lunar and Planetary Society Lunar Geology

  4. South Pole-Aitken Basin • Largest impact basin in the solar system • Different element concentration from the rest of the Lunar surface • Thinner crust • Mantle may be present • Compositionally different from crust South Pole-Aitken Basin Topology Source: Lunar and Planetary Institute South Pole-Aitken Basin Iron and Titanium Concentration Source: Lunar and Planetary Institute Lunar Geology

  5. Why Manned Exploration? • Humans versus robots debate • Humans have greater versatility than robots • Flexibility of tasks that can be accomplished • Maneuverability/Range of motion • On site decision-making • Ability to reason to solve unexpected problems • No time delay from telerobotics • Engages public interest Lunar Geology

  6. Traverse Phase I • Start: Landing Zone at Mons Malapert • Prepare Rovers • Begin star-tracking • First Stop: De Gerlache Crater • Second Stop: Shackleton Crater • Resupply • Setup observatory Lunar South Pole Source: Space.com LunarSS

  7. LunarSS Earth-set image taken by KAGUYA Source: JAXA

  8. Return Route Return trip to Mons Malapert along different route to cover additional terrain Third Stop: Faustini Crater Fourth Stop: Shoemaker Crater Fifth Stop: Malapert Crater End: Mons Malapert Lunar Geology Top/Right: Shoemaker-Faustini and Shackleton Craters Source: Space.com NASA, Left (Right) South Pole Cold Traps Source: Cornell University

  9. 0. Mons Malapert De Gerlache Crater Shackleton Crater Faustini Crater Shoemaker Crater Malapert Crater Main Traverse Path Excursions Source: NASA-JPL Clementine Elevation and Slope Maps LunarSS

  10. Support • Twin rovers in case of a malfunction or accident • Main Rover • Basic tools and drill for geological sampling • Storage for Earthbound samples • Small quarters for multi-day traverses or site studies • Pressurized Lab for preliminary on-site testing • CEV passes overhead approximately every 90 minutes Lunar Geology

  11. Further Studies: Phase II • Power System Links • Schrödinger Basin (Crater) • Setup SPIDAR Array • Explore Lava tubes Above: Elevation map of South Pole-Aitken Basin Left: Dark-halo crater located within Schrödinger Basin Source: Lunar and Planetary Institute, Clementine Images Lunar Geology

  12. Future Studies: • Ideally the entirety of the Lunar surface will be traversed and compositionally mapped • Heavy duty drilling operations to study deeper layers of the lower crust and mantle • Very long traverses • Completely equipped Mobile Lab (or permanent base) for thorough on-site testing Lunar Geology

  13. References • Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) • KAGUYA (SELENE), Image Taking of Earth-Rise by HDTV • NASA-JPL • NASA Views Landing Site Through Eyes of Future Moon Crew • Lunar Mission Pilot Case Studies • NASA • Enhanced Radar Imagery of Lunar South Pole: Media Briefing, 02.27.08 • SPACE.com • Lunar South Pole Landing Sites Studied • Lunar and Planetary Institute • Digital Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon • Planetary Science Research Discoveries. The Biggest • Hole in the Solar System, G. Jeffrey Taylor, Hawai'i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology • Innovations Report • New lunar south polar maps from SMART-1, 12.03.2008 • X Prize • Target Aitken Basin, South Pole • Lunar Astrobiology: Potential for pre-biotic chemistry at the poles of the Moon, Lucey, Paul • Cornell News • Radar provides first 3-D views of moon's frigid poles Lunar Geology

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