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Implications of Lunar Perspectives

Dr Stanley Rosen

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NSS Board of Advisors

NSS Strategic Planning Committee

NSS Space Settlement Roadmap Team

NSS Policy Committee

Former NSS Board Member and Vice Chair

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May 24, 2018

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Lunar Development and Settlement Supports NSS Goals

  • Supports NSS Vision
    • “People living and working in thriving communities beyond the Earth, and the use of the vast resources of space for the dramatic betterment of humanity.”
  • Aligned with NSS strategic priorities
    1. Promote the economic development of cis-lunar space and a thriving space economy
    2. Promote the utilization of space resources including lunar, asteroidal and solar energy (including Space Solar Power for use on Earth)
    3. Promote a return to the Moon this time to stay in a fashion that stresses sustainability, public-private partnerships, commercial approaches and the enablement of Space Settlement
  • Reflected in NSS Space Settlement Roadmap

Part III. TO THE MOON

MILESTONE 18: Robotic Confirmation of Lunar Resources�MILESTONE 19: A Lunar Research and Development Facility�MILESTONE 20: A Continuously Occupied Multi-Purpose Lunar Base�MILESTONE 21: A True Lunar Settlement��

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Observations Regarding Lunar Development and Settlement

  • Turning points in how we think about the Moon
    • Literature inspires imagination
    • Technology enables lunar exploration
    • Curiosity drives lunar science
    • Politics, including military interest, motivates lunar outreach (premature?)
    • Economics motivates lunar development
  • Each step created new insights regarding human lunar activities (remote observation, robotic exploration and in situ interaction)
  • And new understanding of our expanding civilization

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Perspectives from Space

  • Views of the Earth
    • From orbit
    • From the Moon
  • Impact on astronauts
    • “Astronauts have seen something new enter their life – a new awareness, a new concept, a new value.” Rosen, Mind in Space, 1976
  • Impact on Society
    • “The most valuable thing a journey to the Moon has to offer is an enriched perspective of the human condition on Earth.” Norman Cousins

Changing perspectives from space change life on Earth

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Political, economic and military interests are approaching a new turning point

  • International political maneuvering for leadership in expanding civilization
  • Potential for newly realized economic benefits
  • Awareness of emerging threats to global security

This nexus is leading to a reimagining of human lunar potentials

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Potential new near-term directions

  • The Moon as a scientific platform
    • Lunar science
    • Astronomy
    • Human physiology
  • The moon as a source of economic wealth
    • Natural resources (materials, minerals)
    • Water
    • Commercial lunar adventures
  • The Moon as a base for strategic observation
    • Cislunar observations of the Earth and Earth orbit
    • Planetary protection

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Strategic Observation from the Moon

  • Conditions
    • Lack of atmosphere
    • A new vantage point
    • Access to energy (solar, nuclear)
  • New instruments
    • Passive (optical, RF)
    • Active using solar or nuclear power
    • Long baseline interferometry
  • New perspectives regarding life on Earth
  • New perspectives regarding life off Earth

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Implications of New Perspectives for NSS

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  • Consistent with newly revised NSS Roadmap for Space Settlement
    • “Another activity that could be supported by a growing (lunar) settlement would be the establishment and maintenance of permanent observatories at various locations, including on the far side of the Moon for radio astronomy, and on the near side of the Moon for continuous surveillance of cislunar space and the Earth.” Milestone 21�
  • Explaining this imminent change is part of NSS’s public outreach strategic priority
    • See “Space 2.0” on your bookshelves soon