If you thought dust bunnies under your couch were a problem, imagine trying to deal with dust on the Moon. Dust poses a significant challenge for astronauts who live and work on the lunar surface. Thus, NASA is developing technologies that mitigate dust accumulation, allowing for a safer and more sustainable presence on the Moon.
A flight test aboard a suborbital rocket system that will simulate lunar gravity is the next step in understanding how dust mitigation technologies can successfully meet this challenge. During the flight test with Blue OriginSeven technologies developed by NASA’s Game Changing Development program within the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate will study regolith mechanics and lunar dust transport in a simulated lunar gravity environment.
In the absence of an atmosphere, dust is kicked up from the surface by plumes from a spacecraft as it lands on the lunar surface. But it can also be lifted by electrostatic charges. Lunar dust is electrostatic and ferromagnetic, meaning it sticks to anything that carries a charge.
Kristen John, NASA Lunar Surface Innovation Initiative The technical integration manager at Johnson Space Center said: “The fine-grained nature of dust contains particles smaller than the human eye can see, which can make a contaminated surface appear looks clean. »
Although lunar dust may appear smooth with a powdery finish, its particles are actually irregular in shape. Lunar dust can scratch everything from a space suit to human lungs. Dust can also prevent hardware from surviving the lunar night when it accumulates on solar panels, leading to a reduction in available power. A buildup of dust covers the thermal radiators, increasing the temperature of the equipment. Lunar dust can also accumulate on windows, camera lenses, and visors, leading to obscured vision.
Projects tested on lunar gravitational flight with Blue Origin include ClothBot, Electrostatic Dust Lofting (EDL), and Hermes Lunar-G.
Cloth robot
When future astronauts perform extra-vehicular activities on the lunar surface, they could bring dust into pressurized habitable zones. The goal of the ClothBot experiment is to mimic and measure the transport of lunar dust when released by a small piece of spacesuit fabric. When agitated with pre-programmed movements, the compact robot can simulate “doffing,” the movement that occurs when removing a spacesuit. A laser-illuminated imaging system will capture the dust flow in real time, while sensors will record the size and number of particles traveling through space. This data will be used to understand dust generation rates inside a lander or airlock from extra-vehicular activity and to refine lunar dust transport models for future and potential lunar missions. Martians.
Electrostatic dust collection
This technology will examine the lifting of lunar dust when an electrostatic charge occurs after exposure to ultraviolet light. The EDL camera with associated lights will record and illuminate for the duration of the flight. During the lunar gravity phase of flight, a vacuum gate containing the dust sample will release and the ultraviolet light source will illuminate the substance, charging the grains until they electrostatically repel each other and rise up. The raised dust will pass through a sheet laser as it rises from the surface. When the lunar gravity phase ends, the ultraviolet light source turns off and the camera continues recording until the end of the flight. This data will inform dust mitigation modeling efforts for future lunar missions.
Hermes Lunar-G
NASA partnered with Texas A&M and Texas Space Technology Applications and Research (T STAR) to develop Hermes Lunar-G, a technology that uses flight-proven hardware to conduct experiments with regolith simulants. Hermes was previously an installation of the International Space Station. Hermes Lunar-G reused Hermes hardware to study lunar regolith simulants. Hermes Lunar-G technology uses four canisters to compress simulants during flight, takeoff and landing. When the technology is in lunar gravity, it decompresses the contents of the cartridges while high-speed images and sensors capture data. The results of this experiment will provide information on regolith mechanics that can be used in various computer models. Results from Hermes Lunar-G will be compared to microgravity data from the space station as well as similar data acquired during parabolic flights for lunar and microgravity flight profiles.
As the primary challenge of lunar exploration, dust mitigation is influencing several NASA technology developments. Capabilities ranging from in situ resource utilization to surface energy and mobility rely on some form of dust mitigation, making it a cross-cutting area.
Kristen John
Technical Integration Lead for NASA’s Lunar Surface Innovation Initiative
Engineering teams perform various tests to mitigate the dust, to ensure it does not damage hardware sent to the Moon. NASA’s Game Changing Development program created a reference guide for lunar dust mitigation to help engineers build hardware for the lunar surface.
from NASA Flight Opportunities Program funded the Blue Origin flight test and vehicle capability enhancements to enable the simulation of lunar gravity during the flight of a suborbital rocket for the first time. The payloads are managed as part of NASA’s Game Changing Development program within the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate.
To learn more, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/stmd-game-changing-development/