NASA is taking steps to build a Moon Base, including discussing a “perimeter”

“What we’re doing is very difficult,” Isaacman said. “We know very little from the combined 80-hour EVA time of the Apollo missions, and that was more than half a century ago.”

To that end, one of the central features of the original Moon Base program is the development of MoonFall programwhich will include three or four drones each 1 meter long, with a weight of 225 kg, including propellant. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory is leading the development of MoonFall drones, and these will be delivered to the lunar surface by Firefly Aerospace, Garcia-Galan said.

The goal is to get these spacecraft to the Moon before the Artemis IV lunar lander, which is scheduled for before 2028, to provide a high-resolution image of the moon. For most of the Moon, the current image is 1 meter, and NASA wants it to be 1 centimeter, Garcia-Galan said.

Creating a perimeter

These drones will perform a number of tasks, including looking at the ice in areas that are permanently shaded, identifying areas that scientists need, and providing information about the slopes, including soil mechanics, lighting, and terrain. At the end of their flight life, the drones can be used to establish the boundaries of the Moon Base.

“We hope … to establish a space around the Moon Base with four or three drones,” Garcia-Galan said. “We can put it in the corners of areas where we think we have big scientific goals, or we want to build the Moon.” In these areas, he added, the retired drones could also provide reconnaissance and reconnaissance, or perhaps serve as lunar launch platforms.