Location of a Lunar Base: A Site Selection Strategy

摘要

Selection of a site on the lunar surface for a soft lander, perhaps with a rover, possibly with astronauts, should be led by a strategic purpose or vision which considers (1) scientific objectives, both on the Moon, as well as from the Moon (e.g., astronomy), (2) resource utilization, and (3) operational considerations, both orbital and surface. Some of the relationships between these factors were explored during workshops convened at Johnson Space Center by NASA in April and August, 1990. However, the reports from these workshops are buried in the `gray literature;' they are not even official, catalogued NASA publications. With any plans for a return to the Moon, it is paramount to consider thoroughly the rationale for site selection. The three factors mentioned above are complex and strongly inter-connected. For example, if astronauts are involved, operations are paramount, and safety is the prime consideration. In an emergency situation with the rescue spacecraft in a polar orbit, this vehicle is overhead to receive a rendezvous vehicle from the lunar surface only once every 14 days. Safety also mandates a location on the lunar frontside so that constant communications can be maintained with the astronauts. These two factors alone dictate near-equatorial sites on the frontside, with the spacecraft in an equatorial orbit. About 50 potential sites for both robotic landings and manned lunar outposts were considered. In a simulation of the site-selection process, six locales were evaluated in detail: Mare Tranquillitatis; Mare Ingenii; Riccioli; Amundsen; Aristarchus; and Mare Smythii. The merits of each of these sites were discussed in terms of lunar geoscience, geophysics, space physics, astronomy, and lunar resources, as well as operational constraints. These "strawman" considerations and recommendations of the NASA Site Selection Committee provide the basis for a realistic site selection for a human presence at a base on the lunar surface.