by sallyseaver » Thu Oct 26, 2017 5:37 am
According to my new theory [Mass Vortex Theory], the moon should have a boundary layer similar to the Moho -- between the crust and mantle -- that contains water. So if we were able to drill through about 5 km of basalt in a deep mare region, a lunar colony could have sufficient water for a long time. The water in this boundary layer would not be frozen due to the heat that is still present in its core and mantle. [1]
I agree with Case, that it would NOT be appealing to live underground all the time.
An ambitious, far-fetched idea is to build a dome at 6-8 km above the surface. Use titanium from the Moon (we know it has titanium in abundance [2]) to build the scaffolding and then fit hexagonal pieces of borosilicate glass (which has a low coefficients of thermal expansion so that it is less subject to thermal stress) or a different suitable material with a join material that could grow and shrink with temperature and be resistant to weathering from cosmic rays. Ideally, we'd want a material for the dome/shield that allows the benefits of sunlight to get through but not the destructive solar energetic particles or cosmic rays --- but it can't be too expensive. Possibly, robots could be employed to build the dome after the scaffolding is in place. Of course, there would need to be a space door for spacecraft to enter and exit. Build up an atmosphere under the dome. The dome could also help lessen the thermal fluctuations on the surface for inhabitants.
In this case, living in a lunar magma tube would only need to happen while the dome is being built.
AND there would be more territory for the human race to expand into. Financial income could come from mining for platinum, other metals, and minerals. A city on the Moon could be devoted to building and launching spacecraft.
I agree with Chris, that it makes a lot more sense to colonize the Moon first at our current level of technology. It is much closer for shuttling personnel and supplies. At the same time, we can build experience for some day attempting a colony on Mars. Launching transporters to Mars from the Moon should be less expensive than launching from Earth, once the infrastructure and fuel are economically available.
[1] "To this day, the deep near-side crust is a couple of hundred degrees warmer than its counterpart on the far side"
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2014/10/ ... tions-moon
[2]
https://www.space.com/13247-moon-map-lu ... anium.htmlAccording to my new theory [Mass Vortex Theory], the moon should have a boundary layer similar to the Moho -- between the crust and mantle -- that contains water. So if we were able to drill through about 5 km of basalt in a deep mare region, a lunar colony could have sufficient water for a long time. The water in this boundary layer would not be frozen due to the heat that is still present in its core and mantle. [1]
I agree with Case, that it would NOT be appealing to live underground all the time.
An ambitious, far-fetched idea is to build a dome at 6-8 km above the surface. Use titanium from the Moon (we know it has titanium in abundance [2]) to build the scaffolding and then fit hexagonal pieces of borosilicate glass (which has a low coefficients of thermal expansion so that it is less subject to thermal stress) or a different suitable material with a join material that could grow and shrink with temperature and be resistant to weathering from cosmic rays. Ideally, we'd want a material for the dome/shield that allows the benefits of sunlight to get through but not the destructive solar energetic particles or cosmic rays --- but it can't be too expensive. Possibly, robots could be employed to build the dome after the scaffolding is in place. Of course, there would need to be a space door for spacecraft to enter and exit. Build up an atmosphere under the dome. The dome could also help lessen the thermal fluctuations on the surface for inhabitants.
In this case, living in a lunar magma tube would only need to happen while the dome is being built. :) AND there would be more territory for the human race to expand into. Financial income could come from mining for platinum, other metals, and minerals. A city on the Moon could be devoted to building and launching spacecraft.
I agree with Chris, that it makes a lot more sense to colonize the Moon first at our current level of technology. It is much closer for shuttling personnel and supplies. At the same time, we can build experience for some day attempting a colony on Mars. Launching transporters to Mars from the Moon should be less expensive than launching from Earth, once the infrastructure and fuel are economically available.
[1] "To this day, the deep near-side crust is a couple of hundred degrees warmer than its counterpart on the far side" [url]http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2014/10/recent-volcanic-eruptions-moon[/url]
[2] [url]https://www.space.com/13247-moon-map-lunar-titanium.html[/url]