For the first time since the Apollo Era, astronauts will be sent to the Moon. Commercial space entities such as Blue Origin are trying to conduct regular missions in support of human exploration while also mounting their own private ventures. The creation of permanent infrastructure, a regular human presence, and the emergence of a lunar economy are all possibilities in the future. There are a lot of questions about how humans will live on the moon.
The inflatable structures specialist Pneumocell recently conducted a study to see if lightweight structures would be a good option. A series of donut-shaped inflatable structures could be transported to the Moon at a low cost and then inflated. Under the lunar regolith, the habitats would be partially buried and surrounded by solar mirrors. The Inflatable Moon Habitat can be used to establish a foothold on the Moon.
Thomas Herzig is an Austrian architect who specializes in the design of self-sufficient habitats. They were joined by Gabor Bihari, an experimental physicist with the University of Debrecen, Hungary. The idea for an inflatable moon habitat was submitted by Pneumocell to the European Space Agency in 2021.
The study was supported by the Discovery and preparation program, which helps formulate the exploration strategy. The goal of the study was to develop a design for a lunar habitat that could be self-sufficient. The concept consists of three main steps.
The structures would be inflated and covered with loose regolith when they arrived at the lunar landing site. The sun would be followed through the sky by a mirror that was built above each habitat. The mirrors are made of silver coated Kapton, a polyimide film that can endure extreme temperature and vibration. There is a cone-shaped mirror that reflects the sun's rays into the greenhouse.
The lightweight and module structure of the structures make them very cost-effective. An analysis of possible transportation methods for both the modules and astronauts was included in the report. Smaller rockets like the Ariane 64, which has four solid rocket boosters, could be used for launch services.
The European Large Logistics Lander is intended to fulfill multiple types of proposed European Space Agency missions to the Moon. The Inflatable Moon Habitat could be part of the mission, though the lunar gateway is not needed.
The best sites around the lunar poles were considered by Herzig and his colleagues as a first step. The data from the LRO and illuminations models were used to do this. The H0 area near the rim of the Hinshelwood crater is one of the best locations.
The sites are close to the crater floors that provide access to abundant water ice. The list of landing sites recently identified by NASA for the Artemis III mission is consistent with this. The terrain might be too steep and rugged, and there could be mechanical instability in the ground.
The illumination profile at the surface and the height of the solar mirrors were evaluated by the team. The north polar H0 site has the longest period of total darkness at 11 days, while the south polar C1 site has only four days. The southern site has better opportunities for better illumination than the northern site.
The room modules can be connected to extend the habitat and increase the volume for the crew. The team looked at several possibilities and recommended using CFRPs. They recommend Mylar for the habitat walls and Dyneema for the tubes that support the mirror, both of which are made of plastic.
The main modules have corridors that are 17 ft in diameter and 22.2 m in diameter. The living and working areas are attached to the outer sides of the greenhouse. The team suggested starting with one greenhouse and adding modules over time.
“[W]e suggest a “village” consisting of 16 greenhouse units that are placed in a double linear arrangement in order to minimize mutual shadow casting among the mirror towers when the Sun moves along the lunar horizon. Greenhouses, living areas, and connecting tunnels are all made of double-layered inflatable foils, while the towers carrying the upper mirrors are a low-weight construction consisting of carbon fiber tubes. Moreover, a redundancy of the corridors keeps the parts connected even if some parts are destroyed in an accident.”
The mirrors are made of silver coated foils that are bent into the correct shape to save weight. This takes advantage of the fact that lunar regolith has a charged nature that makes it stick to everything. The upper mirrors reflect the sunlight into the center of the torus. It is reflected by a conical mirror into the greenhouse through a window.
During a lunar day, the system of mirrors will be able to give 65 kilowatts. This is needed for food production but could lead to thermal problems.
“While this power is necessary to optimally facilitate photosynthesis, it would quickly overheat the greenhouse without an active cooling radiator. In our design, the cooling system operates with ammonia and water as working fluids. In this way, the temperature inside the greenhouse can be kept close to 26°C during the illumination phases. During dark periods, the active cooling is switched off and mirrored roller blinds cover the window in order to limit heat losses to a minimum.”
They looked at the life support system and food production to see if they could be part of a recycling system. They found that a mixture of 35% oxygen, nitrogen, and 1% carbon dioxide would be ideal for the greenhouse. This is slightly different from Earth, which has 23% oxygen, 75.5% nitrogen, and 0.05% of carbon dioxide by mass.
The entire system is driven by solar power and is seasonal, where the greenhouse plants convert CO 2 into Oxygen gas. It replenishes the oxygen supply for the crew and prevents a build-up of CO 2 from astronauts. Composting plant waste and excrement helps maintain soil health. Excess CO2 is temporarily stored in a container and reintroduced during the day. The closed-loop bioregerative system is created by this.
“Altogether, it appears possible to create in the long term a closed system, in which each greenhouse unit produces enough food to nourish a crew of two humans without the need to import additional food from earth. Generally, we create [on] a small scale a complete sustainable ecological cycle as we (should) have on Earth.”
The proposal was evaluated and compared with two other designs. The more recent Moon Village was unveiled in 2019. The elements considered for space habitats are represented in these two designs. The Moon Village has a partly inflatable structure covered by a 3D-printed shell, whereas the lunar outpost has a fully inflatable structure.
The PneumoPlanet habitat combines the benefits of both elements in a way that is cost-effective. Herzig and his team summarized.
“[O]ur PneumoPlanet design features by far the lowest payload per m2 of usable area, the most effective protection from cosmic particle radiation, and the lowest energy requirement for the construction process and in operation. Additionally, it is the only concept of all published until now, that provides a complete ecological cycle for self-sufficient production of food and oxygen.”
In short, the Inflatable Moon Habitat combines the benefits of low transportation costs, inflatable modules, ISRU, and a close-loop system to ensure safe and sustainable living on the Moon. Herzig and his colleagues conclude by stating that a prototype should be built on Earth that could be used to investigate various details and the components of the design. They specifically recommend that the performance of the electrostatic mirror foils, the life cycle inside the greenhouses, the material properties of the inflatable foils, and/or the transparent foil be the subject of investigation.
These and other design studies are part of the long-term vision of the European Space Agency. The infrastructure that will allow for a sustained human presence on the Moon will be created by NASA and other space agencies. They want to create an International Moon Village where astronauts of all nationalities can work together and conduct science operations on the moon. In an interview with Euronews, Jan Wrner, the then-Director General of the ESA, explained the idea in 2015.
He wants to build a base station on the moon. It is an open station for different member states of the world.
During the 2016 Ministerial Council Meeting (CM16) in Lucerne, Switzerland, he gave a speech titled " A vision for global cooperation and Space 4.0." He stated that way.
The Moon Village concept seeks to transform the paradigm shift in space activities by creating an environment where both international cooperation and the commercialization of space can thrive.
It is important to understand that the Moon Village concept is not a project or a program. We don't mean a development that includes houses, shops, and a community center. The village is a community created when groups join forces without first sorting out every detail, instead coming together to share interests and capabilities.
The goal of this village is to help people. The creation of a permanent lunar base can be accomplished by establishing a temporary human presence on the moon with easy to deploy structures. A new era of lunar exploration and research will be enabled by this.
You can learn more about the research and development programs at the public library. Pictures and videos of the Pneumo Planet Mars Habitat, which inspired the design of their inflatable lunar base, can be found on the Pneumocell website. Bihari and Herzig have done a study on another Mars habitat called the " Space Nomad".
Further reading is done by the European Space Agency.
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