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 dangers of space and describe the living and working facilities in their Moon Camp.
Halton District School Board Calgary-Alberta Canada 12 0 / 3 English
Astronauts at our moon camp stay on task with personalized features, especially millions of kilometers away from home. Moreover, we use resources on the moon for essential needs. Thus, our camp is situated in locations where we can effortlessly get sun, water, and resources. We chose the title Lunar Patrol because Lunar means moon and the astronauts are going to be ‘patrolling’ the moon in search of new elements. They will stay for 6 months until a new ‘patrol’ arrives. This is an innovative way to represent our curiosity about lunar exploration. There will be 16 astronauts on the moon camp at a time, 4 for each of the four specializations. The experiments that will be conducted are related to Hydro and Aeroponics for growing food and Electrolysis for oxygen exposition.
Lunar patrol has bases for living, and the rest are for work or research, like the lab, observatory, medical, and farms. Also, there is a garage for the big truck and rovers, rovers are used for research, and the big truck in case of an emergency evacuation and large goods transportation. The garage has been connected to the storage room for things we might need or run out of, every six months the storage room is supplied when a new patrol arrives. Crucially, we have allocated a communications room to connect with people on Earth. We have added wires to each room for technology backup, along with an emergency room for short-term emergencies.
Moon is the nearest celestial body to Earth which can be used as a testing ground for space exploration. Our Astronauts will be the pioneers in building a sustainable human camp. Their research on growing crops on the moon will be the answer for the food supplement for long-duration travels. Building a moon camp is the first step towards building a space settlement that will help humanity travel outside of our solar system.
The Moon’s south pole is where our camp is situated. The nearby crater, Shackleton Crater, serves as a landing spot.
This location has a consistent surface area. It has considerable traces of water ice in its permanently shadowed areas, which shall be extracted and used for settlement on the Moon. Shackleton Crater has areas that receive nearly continuous sunlight as well as areas that are in permanent shadows. This indicates a balancing point in which both meet and hold the perfect condition for lighting. For exploration on the moon, the crater is large, measures about 21 km in diameter and 4 km deep, and contains interesting geological features such as a raised rim and terraced walls.
Some parts of the buildings will be 3D printed such as classic parts of the bunker, and solar panels, according to Blue Origin, solar panels can be made on the moon, and others such as mini storage. Moon’s soil mixed with urea, a binding agent, from human urine will be utilized for 3D printing. Other parts including, a 3D printers, experiments, and furniture will be brought over from Earth, though this is not going to happen very often.
Protection
Using the Whipple shield on the moon is a type of shielding used on spacecraft to protect them from space debris and micrometeoroids. It consists of two thin layers of metal separated by a layer of Kevlar or other high-strength material. We would implement this around our rocket and moon camp to protect it from any damage. We also have an emergency room in case something goes wrong. It has beds, food, water, and entertainment. It is underground. The emergency room also has a 3D printer, plates, and utensils. It has many backup power ports and a station for electrolysis.
Water
We will use our big truck A.K.A. “The Lunar Mobile” to transport the ice into the purification plant. Once the water has been treated with the coagulation chemicals, it enters a tank with giant paddles. These mix the chemicals and water together and enable the microparticles to form into larger pieces that are likely to stick together, making the sedimentation process in water treatment more effective. This water will be used to drink, bathe/shower, for our toilets, our plants, and to cook.
2. Food
The moon is a harsh environment, with extreme temperatures, radiation, and a lack of atmosphere. This is why the Lunar Patrol has decided to create greenhouses on the moon. They can be designed to shield plants from radiation, regulate temperature and humidity, and provide the necessary nutrients for growth. Along with multiple freeze-dried foods, pre-packaged from Earth, the greenhouses, with hydroponic methods, will provide fresh food for astronauts. Hydroponics is a method of growing plants without soil. Instead, plants are grown in a nutrient-rich water solution, allowing them to receive all the nutrients they need directly from the water.
3. Power
Solar power production is the route we are willing to take! Solar power production on the Moon involves the use of photovoltaic panels to convert sunlight into electricity. Firstly, the panels are deployed onto the lunar surface, and oriented toward the Sun to maximize their exposure to sunlight. The panels will then absorb sunlight and convert it into direct current electricity. The DC electricity would then be sent to an inverter which would convert it into alternating current electricity. This can provide electricity and other power sources for the whole moon camp.
4. Air
Regardless of oxygen tanks that are compulsory for such missions, our innovative way is Electrolysis. This involves using an electric current to split water into its two component elements, hydrogen, and oxygen, On the moon, there are abundant deposits of water ice in the form of permafrost in the poles of the moon which is the primary exploration spot for team Lunar Patrol. We can use hydrogen as fuel and oxygen (the 02) part of it for breathing. There are challenges with no atmosphere and temperature fluctuations. However, this is an opportunity to showcase our knowledge and tech.
There are four different professions of astronauts being sent to the moon per mission, such as Engineers, Botanists, Doctors, and Astronomers. Each professional will head to a different base in the camp for their daily work. The first mission will be experimenting extensively with Electrolysis, Aeroponics, and Hydroponics. Astronauts will be given mission-based training where they will learn how to grow food using hydroponics. They will also be given general training like staying fit in a low gravity environment, treating any illness, emergency procedures, and troubleshooting every piece of equipment.
The astronauts will follow Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) but will keep track of many other time zones too. They will wake up at 8:00 am in the morning. We can quickly see how these work. Improvisation will be done if needed. The observatory can be used all day for astronomical observations from the moon. Pictures will be sent to Earth via the ESA. Botanists will work with farming techniques. Engineers will continue strengthening the moon camp with lunar resources and the few materials brought from Earth. One astronaut from each profession is going to be in the Communications room per day to connect with Earth. The astronauts connect with the other three in their profession and send reports back to Earth. Later in the day astronauts get free time to contact family and friends and have leisure time, within their home base, consisting of a living room, washroom, kitchen, and bedroom. The camp has an underground emergency room.
