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Oxygen from lunar regolith oxides can be a source for metabolic oxygen and rocket propellant oxidizer. Water ice can provide water for radiation shielding, life-support, oxygen and rocket propellant feedstock. Volatiles from permanently shadowed craters may provide methane (CH 4), ammonia (NH 3), carbon dioxide (CO 2) and carbon monoxide (CO). [10]
One source of the lunar atmosphere is outgassing: the release of gases such as radon and helium resulting from radioactive decay within the crust and mantle. Another important source is the bombardment of the lunar surface by micrometeorites , the solar wind , and sunlight , in a process known as sputtering .
The fine lunar regolith is made of sharp and very adhesive particles, with a distinct gunpowder taste and smell. Lunar regolith is prospected as a lunar resource, particularly for lunar in situ utilization, such as a lunar building material and regolith for growing plants on the Moon. Lunar regolith is primarily the result of mechanical weathering.
The presence of large quantities of water on the Moon would be an important factor in rendering lunar habitation cost-effective since transporting water (or hydrogen and oxygen) from Earth would be prohibitively expensive. If future investigations find the quantities to be particularly large, water ice could be mined to provide liquid water for ...
Over twenty different methods have been proposed for oxygen extraction from the lunar regolith. [7] Oxygen is often found in iron-rich lunar minerals and glasses as iron oxide. The oxygen can be extracted by heating the material to temperatures above 900 °C and exposing it to hydrogen gas. The basic equation is: FeO + H 2 → Fe + H 2 O.
Later, the United States and the Soviet Union establish competing, crewed bases next to the crater to take advantage of the ice for drinking, oxygen and other uses. Shackleton was also the site of the first lunar base in Mass Effect. It was chosen as a location due to its hypothesised water ice deposits.
The English proper name for Earth's natural satellite is typically written as Moon, with a capital M. [19] [20] The noun moon is derived from Old English mōna, which stems from Proto-Germanic *mēnōn, [21] which in turn comes from Proto-Indo-European *mēnsis 'month' [22] (from earlier *mēnōt, genitive *mēneses) which may be related to the verb 'measure' (of time).
The Moon is the only extraterrestrial body for which we have samples with a known geologic context. A handful of lunar meteorites have been recognized on Earth, though their source craters on the Moon are unknown. A substantial portion of the lunar surface has not been explored, and a number of geological questions remain unanswered.