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Water and cheese from the lunar desert: Abundances and accessibility of H, C, and N on the MoonThe Moon has been underrated as a source of H, N, C, and other elements essential to support life and to provide fuel for rockets. There is enough of these elements in each cubic meter of typical lunar soil to provide a substantial lunch for two, if converted to edible forms. The average amount of C per square meter of the lunar surface to a depth of 2 m is some 35 percent of the average amount per square meter tied up in living organisms on Earth. The water equivalent of H in the upper 2 m of the regolith averages at least 1.3 million liters per square kilometer. Mining of H from a small fraction of the regolith would provide all the rocket fuel needed for thousands of years. These elements can be removed from the soil by heating it to high temperature. Some favor the unproven resources of Phobos, Deimos, or near-Earth asteroids instead of the Moon as a source of extraterrestrial material for use in space, or Mars over the Moon as a site for habitation, partly on the basis that the chemical elements needed for life support and propellant are readily abundant on those bodies, but not on the Moon. Well, the Moon is not as barren of H, C, and N as is commonly perceived. In fact, the elements needed for life support and for rocket fuel are plentiful there, although the ore grades are low. Furthermore, the proximity of the Moon and consequent lower cost of transportation and shorter trip and communication times favor that body as the logical site for early acquisition of resources and extraterrestrial living.
Document ID
19930004788
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Haskin, L. A.
(Washington Univ. Saint Louis, MO, United States)
Date Acquired
September 6, 2013
Publication Date
September 1, 1992
Publication Information
Publication: NASA. Johnson Space Center, The Second Conference on Lunar Bases and Space Activities of the 21st Century, Volume 2
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Exploration
Accession Number
93N13976
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAG9-56
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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