Our group name is xXMoonXx. The reason why we chose this name is that the ‘x’ represents SpaceX Rockets which will be used for transportation to the moon. The objective of this moon camp is to send astronauts to the moon to make a base that people can live on for over 8 months and take space exploration to its limits. 

Our camp will consist of: Kitchen, Bathroom, Greenhouse, Airlock, Fire Room, Rover parking area, Lab, Emergency airlock, Bedrooms, Communication room, Water dispenser, Water purification system, Storage room, Recycling room, Launchpad, Exercise room, Basement, Lab-grown meat station, Power station.

There will be space for a maximum of 8 people. Among them will be 1 engineer, 1 scientist, 3 astronauts, and 2 nurses. The limited number of people will make sure that too many resources such as oxygen, water, food, etc. are not heavily consumed.

Some experiments that will be conducted there are: To compare the chemical composition of the lava from the volcano on the moon with the one on earth, to observe the concentration of the minerals at the poles of the moon, to take a sample of the surface and perform experiments by applying heat and pressure, and to take the soil on the moon and test if the soil is fertile enough to grow plants.

Some unique parts of our project are a Lab-grown meat station, pH tests, x-ray fluorescence spectrometry machine.

Close to the lunar poles

The reason why we chose the location close to the lunar poles is that there is a high concentration of minerals like Titanium and Uranium. Titanium will be used for construction and Uranium will be used for nuclear power plants. Another reason why we put our base close to the poles is that, on the poles, there are TONS of ice that we can use for water. Also, on the poles, you can always see the sun on the horizon so we can have a constant energy source.

We are going to 3D print some of the parts like the pipes for the greenhouse but most of the base will be made by the astronauts. Some of the parts will be imported from the earth. For example, we will be importing the structure for the nuclear power plant, polyethylene “Lead walls”, and the 3D printer. The things that will be built on the moon are the foundation “pipes for greenhouse” and the entire room interior.

We plan to get water from the ice on the poles and in an emergency, we will get water from asteroids that have landed on the moon. The method we use to extract the water is separated from small rocks, which will then be heated to 150°C so it evaporates and we will have a tray that has 0.001 cm big holes that the water can go through and the rocks stay on the tray. There will also be a water purification system that will clean the water and make it suitable for drinking and other purposes.

We have two greenhouses to ensure a continuous supply of food. When the crops from one greenhouse are used, the astronauts will have the other greenhouse to harvest crops. Plus, we have a bioreactor for making the lab-grown meat, which gives the astronauts a variety of food choices. Here, the animal cells will multiply and grow. These cells will then be placed in collagen meshwork, where they will form microcarrier beads. These beads will be used to make all types of meat. In addition, there will be a supply of dry fruits and canned food items transported from Earth.

The power source is a huge nuclear power plant that runs on four elements and they are uranium, plutonium, beryllium, and berkelium. The power plant starts with cold water and the cold water goes to the boiler where it is converted to steam, now this steam turns the turbine and in turn, the generator, thus producing electricity which will travel from the nuclear power plant to the moon base. Nevertheless, the steam is sucked through a vacuum pipe into the refrigerator and turns it back into cold water and the process starts all over again.

Astronauts will get air from the plants and algae in the greenhouse. There will be lamps to provide light for the plants and there will be tubs of water so the plants have everything they need to survive. Similar to the food method, the two greenhouses will make sure there is a regular supply of air. The supply is automatically controlled to the entire camp by a water purification system. And the moon base has airlocks to recycle water that we exhale during breathing. It also removes all the moon dust on the suits while entering the base again.

We plan to build the exterior of all of our rooms with titanium that has a 10cm thick Polyethylene coating to stop gamma radiation from entering. We also add gold to the parts of the base that are most exposed to the sun. Also, our nuclear power plant is made out of lead, titanium, and Polyethylene to stop radiation from escaping the power plant and putting the astronauts at risk of getting harmed.

First, the astronauts will wake up at 6 am and get ready. At 7 am, the astronauts will eat breakfast (dry fruit or canned food). From 11 am, they will start their experiments. At 2 pm, The astronauts will have lunch and rest. From 4 pm they will harvest the plants from the greenhouse. Around 7 pm, they would extract minerals from the moon. At 9 pm, astronauts will have dinner. At about 11 pm, all the astronauts will get ready for bed, and at midnight, all the astronauts will sleep. The time zone followed will be GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). The astronauts will send information to the Earth every day about the updates in tests, hazards, etc. In case of emergency, we have an emergency airlock. Here, a sufficient number of substances required by the astronauts will be provided. This emergency airlock can be used for almost a month with a regular supply of oxygen, food, water, etc.