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awuj2
Guest
Moon Polar Positioning and Meteoroid Impact Assessment System - what do you think?<br /><br />In 1995 American satellite based Global Positioning System became fully operational. <br />It actually carries two sets of instrumentation - first for positioning signal emission (as everybody knows) and second – for nuclear detonation detection (NUDET, as they call it).<br />It is global and easy-to-use. There is even a rival system – Russian GLONASS (but not so nicely working), and an European one is being built (GALILEO).<br />The technology is ready and mature, why don’t we use it for something more? <br /><br />1)Why do we need this?<br /><br />A last three nations seriously plan to land humans on the Moon: China, Japan and the United States (there is no clear information about Russia). It is difficult to say which of them will be first (USA?), but it actually does not matter much. The real problem would be to build and maintain a lunar base, with continual human presence. To do so we need proven human-rated spacecrafts (CEV?), heavy-lift rockets, Earth-Moon transition systems, Moon-landing and ascending vehicles, habitation modules. All of that is doable (albeit costly), but: <br /> a)It is very difficult (if possible at all!) to precise maneuver a spacecraft (especially with no humans onboard) far from the Earth, without knowing its exact position. <br /> b)Moon has no atmosphere, so there is no shield defending it from asteroids (or meteoroids). That impacts are currently the only cause for any geological changes there, and actually pose the biggest threat for future station (or other moon-based infrastructure).<br /> c)It is possible to establish a communication link to Earth, but only from one side of the Moon (that facing Earth). A lunar base on its dark side can not have a direct link to Earth at all! <br />Why cannot we solve all of that problems with one good system, based on existing technology?<br /> <br />2)Mission<br />That system should be able to pr