Comparative Analysis of Craterville and Moon Capital: Lunar Base Designs from 2010 Competitions
In 2010, the Lunar Base Competition challenged teams to design a second-generation base on the Moon. 15 entries were deemed realistic, focusing on a permanent human settlement at the South Pole. Two designs, Craterville and Moon Capital, tied for first place in elegance and feasibility. Craterville emphasizes radiation protection, an underground agricultural level, and a Helium-3 energy source. Moon Capital, reliant on solar energy, faces significant design flaws. The competition aimed to create a sustainable environment for 60 residents, advancing lunar science and technology.
Comparative Analysis of Craterville and Moon Capital: Lunar Base Designs from 2010 Competitions
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Presentation Transcript
Moon Base Design Comparison By, Mudassir Ali Andrew Leonard
Lunar Base Competition 2010 • 102 Entries but only 15 that were realistic • Location: South Pole of Moon • Gravitational Difference: 1/6 of Earth • No Atmosphere • Getting things to Moon - $10,000/ lb • Primary Purpose: Provide a science, and technologydevelopment facility on the Moon • Most important scientific material so far is 300 kg of regolith brought back by ApolloAstronauts • Competition was to design a second generation base an international effort to build a permanent human community on the moon
Lunar Base Competition 2010 • Design Requirements: • Facilities located 3m (10 ft) below Lunar Surface for Protection from everyday radiation (not solar flares) • Minimal risk of solar Flares, vacuum of space, etc. • Human Comfort • All plans support a resident staff of 60 people • All entrants were to presume the infrastructure of a first generation base under construction by 2030, completed by 2040 • Two base designs that tied for 1st for Elegance and Feasibility Award in 2011: Craterville and Moon Capital
Craterville • Base acquires CHON: • Oxygen from Oxide Rocks. • Ex. Iron oxide, Titanium oxide • Hydrogen from water in Shackletoncrater • Nitrogen and Carbon are imported from Earth • A satellite will be skimming Nitrogen off Earth atmosphere while in orbit • Helium-3 exported to Earth and used for fusion reactors • Exporting from Moon to Earth done in aluminum containers • Carbon containers used from Earth -> Moon • Base Energy Source: • Helium-3 nuclear fusion reactor • Nearlycontinuous sunlight
Craterville • Tower has reflective surface that takes in light and sends it down • Sunlight coming in laterally • Base has 3 layers 10 m apart and located underground • Protects against Radiation (including solar flares) • Top level- Agricultural level • In the case of a Solar Flare – go to 3rd level chamber • Exterior access • Water filled chamber (airlock) for people and supplies • Standard airlock for large/sensitive equipment • Water is acquired from dark areas in crater • A factory makes disks or cubes of ice and • Ice is then pulled up to lowest level of the base- materials processing area
Moon Capital • Base acquires CHON by importing everything • Base Energy source is through Solar Energy • Tower has reflective surface and is extremely large compared to Craterville • Base is placed on stilts • 3 meters (10ft) of regolith will block 90% of cosmic radiation • During Solar Flare- close garage type doors pile regolith on top and move people to bunker • Design is very inadequate for protection against radiation • Standard airlocks are used to get in and out of base • Water is acquired from a shallow crater • (no such crater is known to exist on the Moon) • => DESIGN FLAW
Extracting Minerals • Robots will be used to extract gasses, glass and metals from the lunar regolith • Japanese designing a robot base that doesn’t require human presence
Next Time… Botany!!! • Both of these bases featured greenhouses to grow food and raw materials. Next lesson we’ll focus on this. • In the food area, we will be talking about “staples”, protein sources in the absence of meat (other than fish and worms) and vitamins needed to stay healthy
