Zubrin Moon Direct Plan

Zubrin has detailed creating a moon base within 4 years using a few SpaceX Falcon Heavy missions.

10 kilometer power beaming is a key to creating lunar fuel.

Once we have lunar fuel production, we can use Falcon 9 to launch missions.

He wants to use a lunar vehicle with 6 kilometer per second which can explore most of the moon and directly return to earth orbit.

The Falcon Heavy can lift 60 tons to low Earth orbit (LEO). Starting from that point, a hydrogen/oxygen rocket-propelled cargo lander could deliver 12 tons of payload to the lunar surface.

We therefore proceed by sending two such landers to our planned base location. The best place for it would be at one of the poles, because there are spots at both lunar poles where sunlight is accessible all the time, as well as permanently shadowed craters nearby where water ice has accumulated. Such ice could be electrolyzed to make hydrogen-oxygen rocket propellant, to fuel both Earth-return vehicles as well as flying rocket vehicles that would provide the lunar base’s crew with exploratory access to most of the rest of the moon.

The first cargo lander carries a load of equipment, including a solar panel array, high-data-rate communications gear, a microwave power-beaming set up with a range of 100 kilometers, an electrolysis/refrigeration unit, two crew vehicles, a trailer, and a group of tele-operated robotic rovers. After landing, some of the rovers are used to set up the solar array and communications system, while others are used to scout out the landing area in detail, putting down radio beacons on the precise target locations for the landings to follow.

The second cargo lander brings out a 12-ton habitation module, loaded with food, spare spacesuits, scientific equipment, tools, and other supplies. This will serve as the astronauts’ house, laboratory, and workshop of the moon. Once it has landed, the rovers hook it up to the power supply and all systems are checked out. This done, the rovers are redeployed to do detailed photography of the base area and its surroundings. All this data is sent back to Earth, to aid mission planners and the science and engineering support teams, and ultimately forming the basis of a virtual reality program that will allow millions of members of the public to participate in the missions as well.

by – Nextbigfuture.com
Sources – Youtube, Space News, Robert Zubrin

Other Zubrin articles at Nextbigfuture:
Robert Zubrin has new propellantless space propulsion concept – Dipole Drive

Zubrin fixes the Drake equation that estimates the amount of technologically advanced aliens in the galaxy to allow for interstellar travel and biosphere reboots

3 thoughts on “Zubrin Moon Direct Plan”

  1. How do you plan to decelerate from a lunar return speed to an earth orbital speed………pretty costlt in delta-v, ain’t it?

  2. How do you plan to decelerate from a lunar return speed to an earth orbital speed………pretty costlt in delta-v ain’t it?”

  3. How do you plan to decelerate from a lunar return speed to an earth orbital speed………pretty costlt in delta-v, ain’t it?

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