China has revealed a comprehensive blueprint for the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) during an international conference on deep space exploration held in Tunxi District, east China's Anhui Province. This initiative has garnered significant interest from global space agencies and organizations.
At the second International Deep Space Exploration Conference, China's space agency signed an agreement with its counterpart in Senegal to collaborate on the ILRS. Additionally, China's Deep Space Exploration Lab has entered into memoranda of understanding with ten organizations from countries including Serbia, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Pakistan, Panama, and South Africa.
The ILRS initiative, mapped out by China in 2017, aligns with upcoming lunar missions planned by other nations such as India, Japan, Russia, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, SpaceX, and Blue Origin.
In a recent development, Chinese scientists discovered a new type of mineral in a lunar sample from the Chang'e-5 mission, which contains water in its molecular structure. They have detailed the process of extracting up to 76 kilograms of water from one tonne of lunar regolith. Last year, NASA also mapped the distribution of water molecules near the moon's south pole.
The presence of water on the moon's surface enhances the feasibility of a long-term human presence, which is essential for extensive lunar research.
\"We would like to build a laboratory so that we can extract this water and build something from it,\" said Nasr Al-Sahhaf, chair of the International Moon Day Group.
Sandra Hauplik-Meusburger, an academician with the International Academy of Astronautics and a professor at the Vienna University of Technology, emphasized the significance of an international research station.
\"An international research station is something for which many people have waited a long time. It is also a stepping stone towards space, deep space exploration,\" she added.
Challenges of a Long-Term Human Presence on the Moon
The lunar environment poses extreme challenges, including no atmosphere and only one-sixth of Earth's gravity. Establishing a research lab on the moon involves overcoming extreme temperatures, frequent moonquakes, unpredictable micrometeorites, and cosmic particle radiation.
\"It is first necessary to overcome the extreme temperatures on the lunar surface, frequent moonquakes, unpredictable micrometeorites, as well as the cosmic particle radiation environment,\" stated Zhang Zexu, professor at the Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) and director of the research center for deep space exploration at HIT.
Additional challenges include lunar surface surveying, material production, resource utilization, energy development, architectural design and construction, transportation and maintenance, ecosystem building, and life support.
\"These aspects are still not fully secured, and the technical solutions are just on paper and in the laboratory,\" explained Jan Kolar, vice president of the Moon Village Association and former president of the Czech Space Office. \"This will be the most risky part of any mission to the moon.\"
According to Zhang Zexu, reliable protection strategies must be formulated to address these complex constraints, serving as the foundation for all related work.
Global Effort
The moon continues to captivate global experts and young engineers, driving collaborative efforts to overcome its challenges. During the third International Moon Day on July 20, visionaries highlighted the importance of global unity in space exploration.
\"When you fly into space, you see the Earth as unity, as a home for all of us, and everything becomes interdependent. So we have to think globally,\" said Dumitru-Dorin Prunariu, president of the Space Explorer Association and Romania's first astronaut.
The Moon Station 2050 Global Innovation Competition, co-organized by HIT, the China Aerospace Society, and the International Lunar Village Association, showcased 189 entries from 45 countries. These innovative solutions focus on transportation to the moon, energy utilization, architecture and construction, robotics, and telecommunications.
Among the standout projects, a team from Tsinghua University designed lightweight robots capable of drilling lunar soil to gather data on resources essential for constructing the moon station. Additionally, students from the University of Tokyo proposed thin film solar cells that can be printed directly onto lunar regolith to harness energy using in-situ resources.
\"The moon is part of the Earth, so being able to understand what's happening on the moon, around the moon, and in between the moon and the Earth is fundamental for all humanity,\" remarked Giuseppe Reibaldi, president of the Moon Village Association. \"Therefore, you must unite all the countries in the world on these issues.\"
Reference(s):
To the moon: What will a research station on the moon look like?
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