NASA is preparing the Moon for humans: Three new missions will search for underground shelter, water ice and hidden hazards

Before astronauts can spend long periods on the Moon, NASA needs to answer some very basic questions: Where can they find useful resources? What could protect them from the lunar environment? And what perils lie beneath their feet? NASA has selected three new scientific studies that will help answer these questions as it strives to set up its very first Moon Base.

The three payload suites will investigate different parts of the lunar environment. One will monitor hazards around the surface, another will look beneath the ground for possible lava tubes, and a third will search for ice while studying how the surface behaves during future lunar operations.

Also Read | Fashion promised to go green. Here’s how the New York Climate Week, behind closed doors, exposed the challenges of transforming the industry


These experiments were chosen through NASA’s Payloads and Research Investigations from International Space Station (PRISM) program.

They will land on the Moon through the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, where the payload for NASA science and technology missions to the Moon is delivered using commercial firms.

These experiments intend to gather data before human settlement.

Also Read | Mars had a secret water history: NASA rover finds ancient groundwater and hot fluids that reshaped the planet after its ancient lake vanished

NASA says its Moon Base will be developed through a phased approach involving robotic missions, technology demonstrations and infrastructure delivered over time.

For future astronauts, the three investigations could provide information about three things that matter enormously on the Moon: safety, shelter and resources.

NASA wants to know what could threaten a future Moon Base

Although the Moon appears inactive from Earth, the lunar surface is subjected to an entirely different kind of environment than that of our planet.

There is no dense atmosphere to act as a barrier against any object coming into contact with the Moon or even to protect the lunar surface from the harsh conditions of space. Micrometeoroids can fall on the Moon, volatile substances can diffuse into the Moon’s exosphere, and seismic activity can affect the Moon’s surface.

NASA’s Lunar Environment Monitoring Station – South Pole (LEMS-SP) aims to monitor these conditions.

The autonomous instrument suite will monitor falling micrometeoroids and measure volatile materials that enter or move through the Moon's thin outer atmosphere. It will also use a short-period seismometer to detect seismic events.

That information could eventually help engineers understand the risks faced by habitats, equipment and other infrastructure at a future lunar base.

The investigation is led by Mehdi Benna of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

For NASA, the value of such measurements is not limited to scientific knowledge. A long-term lunar outpost will need equipment capable of operating without the protection that Earth's atmosphere provides.

Knowing what is happening around the surface could help planners determine how structures and hardware should be designed and where they should be placed.

In essence, it is an attempt at knowing the environment before astronauts need to rely on it.

According to NASA, its strategy for building the Moon base is one that will be accomplished through steps, where robotic tests will give the necessary information.

Could underground lava tubes become natural lunar shelters?

The second investigation is looking for something that could become extremely valuable to future Moon Base planners: space beneath the lunar surface.

The NASA Geophysical Investigation Mapping Lunar Interior (GIMLI) mission will launch at the Marius Hills Pit, which will examine whether the Marius Hills Pit is a gateway to an underground lava tube.

Lava tubes are naturally occurring underground pathways that are made when hot lava flows out onto the surface and cools, leaving molten material underneath it to flow. On the Moon, there are certain pits discovered by scientists, which could serve as gateways to even bigger geological formations.

If the findings of the GIMLI confirm that there is indeed a lava tube connected to the Marius Hills Pit, then it could be a significant find in terms of the future development of the area.

An underground cavity on the Moon would shield some of the hostile conditions of the surface, such as extreme temperature differences, radiation, and micrometeoroids. Future architects wouldn't have to construct all protection layers from scratch.

That possibility remains to be demonstrated. GIMLI's job is first to establish what lies beneath the surface.

The investigation is led by Nathaniel Putzig of the Planetary Science Institute.

The search also has a scientific purpose. Mapping what lies below the surface can provide information about the Moon's volcanic history and how its interior processes shaped the terrain.

For future exploration, however, the practical question may be just as important: is there a naturally occurring space beneath the Moon that humans could eventually use?

NASA is going after one of the Moon's most valuable resources

The third payload addresses another major question for a future lunar settlement: where exactly is the Moon's usable ice?

DISCO, NASA’s instrument for Depth Imager with Spectral and Color Optics, will be able to take direct measurements of the ice present in the very cold regions of the lunar surface called micro-cold traps.

There are many places in the polar regions of the Moon where there is very little direct sunlight, and which consequently can be very cold and allow ice and volatiles to exist.

Detection of ice from orbit is one task. But knowing about its real distribution and properties is an entirely different matter.

DISCO is intended to provide direct measurements while also studying how the lunar surface responds to activity such as rocket-engine exhaust. The investigation will examine surface stability and mobility conditions, information that could help NASA plan future landings, rovers and other operations.

The payload is led by Ariel Deutsch of NASA's Ames Research Center.

Water ice could become important far beyond drinking water.

If there is enough ice that can be collected and processed, then future explorers might find water useful for their needs, as well as hydrogen and oxygen, which can have uses in propellant production.

NASA has been interested in the potential of lunar water ice to be used for its own benefit as it establishes itself on the Moon. Its Moon Base concept targets the South Pole of the Moon in particular, as the region offers certain resources and lighting conditions.

These missions are really about making the Moon livable

Taken individually, the three investigations have very different goals.

LEMS-SP is watching the environment. GIMLI is looking underneath it. DISCO is searching for a resource within it.

Together, however, they address a more practical question: what would humans need to know before trying to live and work on the Moon for an extended period?

NASA is not planning to arrive with a fully finished lunar settlement in a single mission. The agency's Moon Base programme uses a phased approach in which robotic missions, commercial landers, technology demonstrations and infrastructure deliveries are intended to build knowledge and capability over time.

This adds value to the investigations apart from their own scientific aims.

The precise documentation of lunar dangers may affect the construction of shelters as well as surface hardware. The discovery of a sub-surface lava tube may offer one more alternative for future shelters. Better measurements of surface ice could influence where astronauts operate and which technologies are developed for resource extraction.

NASA is also using its CLPS initiative to increase the frequency of lunar deliveries by working with commercial providers. The agency says this approach will allow science and technology payloads to reach different parts of the lunar surface while supporting the wider Moon Base effort.

The information gathered by robotic missions will therefore become part of a much larger planning exercise.

Before astronauts can build a long-term home on the Moon, NASA needs to understand the ground beneath it, the environment around it and the resources that may be available there.

These three new investigations are designed to provide some of those answers.

FAQ

1. What are NASA's three new Moon investigations?


LEMS-SP will be used by NASA to track any lunar environmental dangers, while GIMLI and DISCO will be used for the study of underground lava tube structures and lunar surface ice, respectively.2. Why would NASA be looking for lava tubes on the moon?

Lava tubes could offer natural shelter from the elements, and even radiation, to future explorers and their equipment. GIMLI will investigate whether the Marius Hills Pit connects to a large underground lava tube.

3. Why is lunar ice important for a future Moon Base?
Water ice could provide a potentially useful resource for future astronauts. NASA is interested in determining where ice exists, how much is present and whether it can eventually be accessed and used during lunar operations. DISCO is intended to provide direct measurements of ice in extremely cold lunar regions.

4. How will these investigations reach the Moon?
The payloads have been chosen using NASA’s PRISM program, and they are scheduled to be delivered to the Moon’s surface under the Commercial Lunar Payload Services Program, which uses commercial enterprises to deliver NASA science and technology payloads.