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Various isotopes of oxygen are present on the Moon in the form of 16 O, 17 O, and 18 O. [28] At least twenty different possible processes for extracting oxygen from lunar regolith have been described, [29] [30] and all require high energy input: between 2–4 megawatt-years of energy (i.e. (6–12) × 10 13 J) to produce 1,000 tons of oxygen. [1]
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.
be re-implanted into the regolith as a result of the Moon's gravity; escape the Moon entirely if the particle is moving at or above the lunar escape velocity of 2.38 km/s (1.48 mi/s), or 5,328 mph (8,575 km/h); be lost to space either by solar radiation pressure or, if the gases are ionized, by being swept away in the solar wind's magnetic field.
Soon after lunar touchdown, the lander would be reloaded with liquid oxygen from the automated lunar oxygen plant. During ascent, the spacecraft would burn Earth-made hydrogen and lunar-made oxygen. [4] The entire lander would lift into a lunar parking orbit and eventually power itself onto a return trajectory.
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.
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.
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).