moon_camp

Moon Camp Explorers Gallery 2020-2021

In Moon Camp Explorers each team’s mission is to 3D design a complete Moon Camp using Tinkercad. They also have to explain how they will use local resources, protect astronauts from the dangerous of space and describe the living and working facilities.

Team: Champagnatas

Externato Marcelino Champagnat  Lisboa    Portugal 11

External link for 3d

Project description

Expanding the habitable human territory is an old humanity dream and a way to do so is to move to the Moon. We aim to build a pioneer Moon Camp where humans can scientifically study and live on the Moon. Our dream is to reproduce an Earth’s identical environment in the long-term with rivers, lakes and forests. To do that we will need water, food, hydrogen, oxygen and other indispensable resources such as rovers to ease transportation in the lunar terrain. The Moon Camp will be solar powered, with generators to be used in emergency situations.

There will be an area too where we will grow food and produce breathable air through photosynthesis, an hospital as the transportation of the sick to Earth is a complicated undertaking, and a laboratory.  To protect the camp from radiation and outer space objects such as meteorites, the facilities will be covered with a dome.

Where do you want to build your Moon Camp?

On the Far side of the Moon

Why did you choose this location?

The far side of the Moon faces away from Earth. Its terrain is rugged, with several impact craters. Although it is called the  “dark side of the Moon”, it is not dark, but unknown. The far side of the Moon as the opposite side experience two weeks of sunlight/two weeks of night. This side is the most unknown and as it is shielded from radio transmissions from Earth, it is also the best location to place radio telescopes. Thus, making the far side of the Moon fertile ground to scientific research.

How do you plan to build your Moon Camp? Which materials would you use?

The Moon Camp will have housing and service buildings (technological and scientific development laboratories). Around the buildings, large plantations will be made with various types of plants (for the photosynthesis process), trees and agricultural areas. We will also have an area just for bees to pollinate the rest of the fertile territory. To ease the transportation of our inhabitants in the camp, all-terrain vehicles will be sent. The buildings will be constructed of aluminum, wood and glass and for protection domes and connection paths fiberglass. Each zone will be inside a high-strength dome.

Explain how your Moon Camp will provide the astronauts with:
Water
Food
Electricity
Air

We will get ice from the ice water mines existent in the Moon and thereafter melt and filter it into safe drinking water using solar radiation as heat source. There will be also a water treatment station were water will be stored and recycled to use in farming production.

In the Moon Camp, our diet will consist mainly of vegetables. As we foresee a low production rate in the first months on the camp, we will resort to energetic bars with cereals and fruits brought from Earth. Dehydrated fertile soil will be also brought from Earth to be hydrated after in the Moon. Dehydrated as to occupy the minimum space possible in the rocket. Fruit trees will be planted in it, giving us food and oxygen. To an efficient and sustainable production, we will have a composting unit.

Our camp will depend on renewable power sources such as solar, through solar panels, and wind, through a windpower plant. We consider too producing energy from asteroids’ velocity and spatial trash. For that, a development program will be implemented in the Moon. There will be also energy generators to be used in emergency situations.

To make it possible for man to remain in the lunar colony for long periods, it is necessary to protect the atmosphere of the colony (building a dome), making it breathable. The production of oxygen will be ensured by trees and other plant species. The plant species we are going to plant are Apuí and algae because they produce high amounts of oxygen.

Describe a day on the Moon for one of your Moon Camp astronauts

The day-to-day life of an astronaut in the Moon Camp starts at 6:00 am to take advantage of the solar radiation. So early in the morning, our astronaut wakes up, has breakfast, leaves the house and travels in the lunar jeep to the lunar mineral analysis laboratory. At 10:00 am, he goes to the community garden next to the laboratory, and picks vegetables to make a light meal. Then return to work until lunch time, which is at 2 pm, go to the cafeteria to have lunch: a vegetable soup, bread (made with the cereals planted in the colony) and fruit also harvested in the colony. After lunch, the astronaut will work in the mines to collect samples for the research he is doing. At 6:00 pm he returns home and do his personal hygiene (the colony has a system for collecting, treating and supplying water to the buildings). Then the astronaut will have a meal of dehydrated meat (from Earth), spaghetti and orange juice. After dinner, the astronaut will speak to his family by videoconference and at 8:00 pm he will sleep.


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