Michael Turner

Lunar ISRU scenarios tend to focus on extracting trace elements, or on metals refinement from regolith using very high temperature electrolysis. An easier lunar ISRU path seems to lie in plain sight. Space-weathered regolith fines (often thought only a hazard for bases) could be a source of very strong basalt after simple refinement steps that also yield glassy silicates and some oxygen. Basalt fiber's specific strength is close to that of some high-performance industrial fibers. It's been… さらに表示

Lunar ISRU scenarios tend to focus on extracting trace elements, or on metals refinement from regolith using very high temperature electrolysis. An easier lunar ISRU path seems to lie in plain sight. Space-weathered regolith fines (often thought only a hazard for bases) could be a source of very strong basalt after simple refinement steps that also yield glassy silicates and some oxygen. Basalt fiber's specific strength is close to that of some high-performance industrial fibers. It's been proposed (Baker & Zubrin, Landis, Puig-Suari et al.) to use a tapered rotating sling on the Moon to send cargo on various trajectories. These authors assumed slings made of fiber stock (such as PBO) that would need to be sent to the Moon at high expense. This paper suggests how basalt fiber from a solar furnace could form a sling that can send cargo from the lunar surface to aerobrake passes at Earth. Regolith-derived products (basaltic, glassy) and oxygen out-gassed from the regolith melt could find use near Earth. Among products suggested for satellites integrated in orbit: lunar oxygen combined with hydrogen from Earth for satellite station-keeping and orbit-adjustment propulsion; basaltic parts for parabolic dishes, reaction wheels, solar PV arrays, and satellite frames; and electrical insulation for power systems. What's suggested for economizing on upper-stage return: basaltic thermal protection for aerobraking and atmospheric entry; parachutes made of basalt fiber and fiberglass; landing legs; and oxygen for reentry burns. As a cost-saving measure, a solid rocket with a casing made of refractory metals can serve as a solar-heated regolith melt furnace after use in landing on the Moon. 部分表示

Shoot the moon? ESA might thank you.

We're already on a Spaceship Earth, as Henry George (and later, Bucky Fuller) pointed out long ago. Do we run it top-down, like a Navy ship? Or democratically? Here, I argue for democracy, while offering fixes for its flaws. Then I suggest how to start on democracies in space without actually emigrating any time soon: exovivaria will teach us the art of global democracy under resource constraints.

Greg Olsen, Anousheh Ansari, and Daisuke Enomoto: is it right to call them “space tourists”? Or does the debate regarding proper terminology really matter?

Property rights rest on having a "cognizable legal theory" of how one's personal interests might be harmed by deprivation of, or damage to, a thing you claim as yours. This is no less true of asteroids - or air molecules. You don't have to be Marxist to believe this. So don't call me one, OK?

While Moore’s Law has demonstrated rapid change in the power of microprocessors, a similar relationship may be unlikely for spaceflight.

"Product lifecycle management’s dividend is hard to measure, impossible to ignore."

Good, cheap, soon - pick any two. Unless you're NASA. Faster, Better, Cheaper (properly understood) was a good idea, but it didn't survive NASA's acid test: Failure is Not an Option. Ironically, that's how to fail more often than you usually would. No technology can cure a dysfunctional organization, but certain technical fixes might help break this "just add money" mindset about NASA's problems.

"Japan's 'wine boom' hasn't gone bust -- it's gone mainstream. To keep that stream flowing, two enterprising Americans created an efficient way to connect the restaurants straight to the wineries."