Using the stuff on the Moon

Using the stuff on the Moon

In late July, over 200 researchers, engineers and managers gathered in Laurel, Maryland, for the 2019 Lunar ISRU Workshop. ISRU stands for In-Situ Resource Utilization. In other words, the meeting was all about using what can be found on the Moon–to support...
Crater analysis suggests more water on the Moon

Crater analysis suggests more water on the Moon

Some of the craters at the Moon’s poles are shallower than typical impact craters. It has just been suggested that the “fill” material could be largely water ice, as is true at Mercury: https://phys.org/news/2019-07-moon-thought.html Of course, the...
Moving around on the Moon

Moving around on the Moon

This week, specifically June 6-9, is the International Space Development Conference in Arlington, Virginia. Traditionally, this is the conference where new thinking and radical ideas receive a hearing from a broad, like-minded audience. My talk is at 11 AM on...
Japan looks at robots for the Moon

Japan looks at robots for the Moon

Japan was an early leader in space robotics. Their ETS-VII mission in 1997 demonstrated the ability of robots on orbit to perform several useful tasks (see the Library for more information on ETS-VII). Now Japan is studying how to use autonomous robots to prepare a...