moon_camp

Moon Camp Pioneers Gallery 2019-2020

In Moon Camp Pioneers each team’s mission is to 3D design a complete Moon Camp using Fusion 360. 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: Czech Scouts

Střední průmyslová škola chemická akademika Heyrovského, Ostrava, příspěvková organizace  Ostrava    Czech Republic 15 to 16 years old

External viewer for 3d project

Project description

[42]

Describe your Moon Camp project.

Our Moon Camp consists of a small room on the ground with airlock and a lift leading underground. Underground are four rooms connected with round corridors, one in the middle serving more than one purpose. On one side are sleeping quarters, able to accommodate 4 astronauts along with bathroom and gym. Next is storage room with shelves, water tanks and reserve battery. On the third side is a laboratory. On the fourth side are three greenhouses with 350 m² of soil, micro irrigation system and system of shades which are providing correct amount of daily sunlight for the plants.

Where do you want to build your Moon Camp?

We want to build our base near the north pole on the rim of Peary crater. The reason number one is the almost constant sunlight allowing us to grow crops without need for artificial lightning and power our base with solar power only. The constant sunlight also means that the temperature is stable around -50°C, this eliminates the need for excessive heating/cooling that would mean unnecessary power consumption. The second reason are craters where the Sun never shines meaning ice is formed in there. The ice would mean source of water, oxygen and possible production of rocket fuel on the moon.

How do you plan to build your Moon Camp? Describe the techniques and materials you would use.

Before the first human reaches the Moon Camp, the Moon Camp will already be built. Robots with all materials and equipment would be sent on the location. The base will be underground so there is a need for excavation work. Four rooms, one with lift shaft, and three greenhouses will be put in the hole and connected with corridors. Then all will be covered with excavated regolith. On top of the lift shaft comes small room with an airlock and next to it solar panel array.

Water
Food
Electricity
Air

At first astronauts would depend on water brought from earth. Later water would be sourced from nearby crater. An ice mining machine would be placed into the crater. The mined water would be then brought to the base in a vehicle. For sake of effectivity, water used for hygiene and other purposes would be recycled or used for watering plants.

The main source of food would be crops grown in greenhouses. With 350 m² of soil and drip irrigation using as little water as possible. Combination of almost permanent sunlight and sunshades would mean the plants would get exact amount of sunlight they need. This means big variety of crops that could possibly be grown in the base. The plant could be also fertilized with dead plants and human waste for the best effectivity. For the case of emergency there would be reservoir of food brought from earth.

The moon camp would fully depend on solar panel array. The array traces the sun for the best effectivity. Because of constant sunlight it would always supply the base with power, except moon eclipses and malfunction of the panels. In that case there would be power cells storing enough power for these situations.

Plants in the greenhouse would produce oxygen as well as consume carbon dioxide. There should be enough plants to produce oxygen for the whole crew. If there were some problems, such as not enough plants, the oxygen would be produced by electrolysis from water.

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

[54]

The environment on the Moon is very dangerous for the astronauts. Explain how your Moon Camp will protect them.

The Moon Camp is located underground. The thick layer of regolith and thick walls made of compressed polyethylene will shield the crew from radiation as well as small meteorites.

Describe a day on the Moon for your Moon Camp astronaut crew.

At 6:00 astronauts wake up, do basic hygiene. Then they have breakfast made mostly of fruits and vegetables grown in the greenhouse. After one group will exercise for about an hour and another one goes working to a lab. Lunch will be again made from the crops from the greenhouse. After launch they will do individual activities, or they will work in groups. They will do activities such as maintaining and cleaning the Moon Camp, looking after crops, working in the lab, going on an expedition or they will have free time. Then comes the dinner an then free time, hygiene and they go to sleep.



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