[meteorite-list] trips to the Moon (Moon bases and meteorite recovery)

From: Michael Gilmer <*meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com*> Date: Mon, 27 Jun 2011 22:06:09 -0400 Message-ID: <BANLkTikE58K4WwHBvsTU6nQjRx2AU_8nGQ_at_mail.gmail.com> · meteoritemike_at_meteoritecentral.com

-- 
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Galactic Stone & Ironworks - Meteorites & Amber (Michael Gilmer)
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On 6/27/11, James Beauchamp <falcon99 at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> " The Apollo astronauts were not meteorite hunters, nor did they have any
> specific mission or training involving meteorites."
>
> Mike, I don't think that's quite correct.  The Apollo crews were well versed
> in the expected geology, and were looking for quite a diverse lot of rocks.
>  They spent many months training with geologists.  Certainly, Dr. Schmitt
> was no exception on Apollo 17.  "From Earth to the Moon" episode 10 was an
> excellent, even a bit romanticized focus on the geology focus.
> I think the focus was (and should have been) more anti-meteorite.  We had
> plenty of those.  But we didn't have verified lunar samples - to include
> cores and other different types.  We needed more of those to verify the
> origins of our companion, and very little time and resources on-hand to get
> them.
> Just my thoughts on the matter.  Obviously, I fully admit I should stay in
> my engineering corner, but couldn't help poking a little.   :)
>
>
>
>
>
> --- On Mon, 6/27/11, Michael Gilmer <meteoritemike at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> From: Michael Gilmer <meteoritemike at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] trips to the Moon (Moon bases and meteorite
> recovery)
> To: "Edwin Thompson" <etmeteorites at hotmail.com>
> Cc: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
> Date: Monday, June 27, 2011, 7:43 PM
>
> Hi Edwin, Sterling, and List,
>
> I love a good science-fiction, science-fact, trip into speculation
> land.  It reminds me of the old pulp sci-fi novels from the 50's and
> 60's that I have read, with rocketships and moon bases.
>
> Cosmic rays are not the only threat, there are also micro-meteorites
> and meteorites.  The Late Heavy Bombardment is long over, but there is
> still a lot of debris peppering the Earth and Moon on a regular basis.
>  With no atmosphere, the lunar surface is basically naked to incoming
> impactors.  A base facility on the lunar surface would be subject to
> high-velocity impacts on a random basis.
>
> Now we can all imagine how the lunar surface is probably littered with
> plentiful meteorites.  The Apollo astronauts were not meteorite
> hunters, nor did they have any specific mission or training involving
> meteorites.  The first meteorite recovery team to be stationed on the
> Moon would be the very first people to hunt the surface - the opposite
> of being "hunted out".  The problem is the lethal environment
> involved.  It would be a death-trap full of meteorites if not handled
> properly.  The Apollo astronauts could not stay out for the extended
> periods necessary to walk a grid or do a meaningful amount of
> searching for suspect rocks.  Although we have made some advancements
> since then, the lunar surface is still the most hostile, alien, and
> lethal environment that an Earthly meteorite hunter could imagine.
> Our modern day meteornauts on the Moon would have to rely on radar,
> remote rovers, and man-operated rovers.
>
> To have any permanent presence on the Moon, the surface would need a
> warning system for incoming impactors.  We can assume an early-warning
> detection system, partially automated, that consists of satellites and
> surface-based radars, telescopes, and other sensors.  This warning
> system would detect potential impactors that are large enough to
> damage facilities or personnel. So, we could have a lunar rover that
> could carry a small team of 2 individuals over a long distance with a
> meaningful duration (say, several hours, or even "overnight" in some
> cases.).  These individuals would be dispatched to retrieve
> large/heavy meteorites that smaller unmanned rovers could not pick up.
>  They could safely travel the surface (relatively speaking) and they
> could be warned to evade/avoid a potentially deadly strike by the
> warning system.  They would still have to worry about the rare fluke
> micro-meteorite or one that slips through the detection system, but it
> would be slightly better odds than a crap-shoot.
>
> The bulk of the searching and retrieval would be accomplished by
> robust remote-operately rovers.  These would be larger than the
> current Mars rovers we know so well (thanks for the always reliable
> updates Mr. Baalke!), but small enough to be produced on a low to
> modest budget.  Essentially it would be a "wander and grab" rover with
> a sophisticated optical system than can scan the lunar surface in high
> resolution and provide a "first person" view to the rover operator who
> is located miles away in an underground facility.   It's main
> attributes would be quickness (to cover larger amounts of real estate
> in a much shorter time span than today's rovers), keen eyes (cameras),
> and economy of travel (able to stay afield for extended periods of
> time).
>
> The rover would also have a robotic arm and a collection bin than can
> be hermetically sealed.  The operator would use the rover to locate
> and retrieve all meteorites within the operating range of the rover.
> Those meteorites which are too large, too heavy, or too numerous for
> the rover to recover, would be assigned to a manned rover mission to
> recover the specimens.
>
> I don't think there would be a lunar base built just to retrieve
> meteorites.  However, one can envision a scientific base that is an
> all-purpose facility to house a number of teams that are based there
> for extended periods of time and are rotated in and out.  Astronomers,
> chemists, physicists, geologists....the potential uses for a lunar
> surface facility would be many and varied, and meteorites could be one
> of those missions.
>
> Instead of ANSMET, we could have MOONMET - now who is going to apply
> for the first expedition?
>
> Best regards,
>
> MikeG
>
> --
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Galactic Stone & Ironworks - Meteorites & Amber (Michael Gilmer)
>
> Website - http://www.galactic-stone.com
> Facebook - http://tinyurl.com/42h79my
> News Feed - http://www.galactic-stone.com/rss/126516
> Twitter - http://twitter.com/galacticstone
> EOM - http://www.encyclopedia-of-meteorites.com/collection.aspx?id=1564
> ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
> On 6/27/11, Edwin Thompson <etmeteorites at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> http://www.space.com/1111-private-moon-trips-forecast.html
>>
>>
>> Dear fellow listers, for only 100 million dollars you can go to the moon
>> and
>> gather your own Lunar specimens. It could be a very profitable enterprise.
>> But the rumor mill has it that China will be going to the Moon next. If
>> you
>> go there be sure to dodge those nasty cosmic rays.
>>
>> There is a society of brainiacs that has designed a substantial Moon base.
>> Sadly that facility must be built beneath the Lunar surface in a volcanic
>> cavern to shield the inhabitants from cosmic ray exposure.
>>
>>
>> Cheers, E.T.
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