According to reports, China is reportedly working towards extracting oxygen from the lunar surface to sustain humans on the Moon.

A Chinese researcher claimed the oxygen is required to build a research centre in space although it is unclear whether the experiment has been carried out by China's Chang’e 5 mission.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/chinas-zhurong-rover-travels-1000-metres-on-mars-surface-completes-planned-exploration-407968">Also Read:&nbsp;China's Zhurong rover travels 1,000 metres on Mars surface</a>

Researcher Guo Linli told a conference that lunar soil is rich in titanium-iron oxide and ferrous oxide. The Chinese researcher said that up to&nbsp;30kg of oxygen can be extracted from 100kgs of soil.

China has put forth an ambitious space programme. Chinese scientists revealed the rocks brought back from Moon showed that it was volcanically active.

The Chang'e-5 mission had reportedly collected 2 kilos of samples from the unexplored areas of the Moon setting a new precedent.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/china-builds-miniature-prototype-helicopter-for-surveillance-on-mars-410194">Also Read:&nbsp;China builds miniature prototype helicopter for surveillance on Mars&nbsp;</a>

China had sent a remote-controlled rover to Mars in May. The robot reportedly studied the surface rocks and atmosphere on Mars.

China plans to set up a space station named Tiangong which reportedly would need 11 missions as it deploys its scientists in space, although Chinese authorities have said it is open to foreign collaboration but it is unclear if the cooperation will be as extensive as the International Space Station (ISS) currently underway.&nbsp;

In March, China had announced it will be collaborating with Russia to build a research station on the Moon named the International Lunar Research Station.

China had said the lunar research station would "carry out multi-disciplinary and multi-objective scientific research activities" including lunar exploration.

(With inputs from Agencies)

According to reports, China is reportedly working towards extracting oxygen from the lunar surface to sustain humans on the Moon. A Chinese researcher claimed the oxygen is required to build a research centre in space although it is unclear whether the experiment has been carried out by China's Chang’e 5 mission.

According to reports, China is reportedly working towards extracting oxygen from the lunar surface to sustain humans on the Moon. A Chinese researcher claimed the oxygen is required to build a research centre in space although it is unclear whether the experiment has been carried out by China's Chang’e 5 mission. Also Read: China's Zhurong rover travels 1,000 metres on Mars surface Researcher Guo Linli told a conference that lunar soil is rich in titanium-iron oxide and ferrous oxide. The Chinese researcher said that up to 30kg of oxygen can be extracted from 100kgs of soil. China has put forth an ambitious space programme. Chinese scientists revealed the rocks brought back from Moon showed that it was volcanically active. The Chang'e-5 mission had reportedly collected 2 kilos of samples from the unexplored areas of the Moon setting a new precedent. Also Read: China builds miniature prototype helicopter for surveillance on Mars China had sent a remote-controlled rover to Mars in May. The robot reportedly studied the surface rocks and atmosphere on Mars. China plans to set up a space station named Tiangong which reportedly would need 11 missions as it deploys its scientists in space, although Chinese authorities have said it is open to foreign collaboration but it is unclear if the cooperation will be as extensive as the International Space Station (ISS) currently underway. In March, China had announced it will be collaborating with Russia to build a research station on the Moon named the International Lunar Research Station. China had said the lunar research station would "carry out multi-disciplinary and multi-objective scientific research activities" including lunar exploration. (With inputs from Agencies)

China plans to extract oxygen from Moon's surface: Report

A small step for China, big step for teenagers: Mars base opens for visitors

By Joshua Chou

The world is still celebrating the historic landing of China’s Chang’e-4 on the far side of the moon on January 3. China has announced its plans to follow up with three more lunar missions, laying the groundwork for a lunar base.

Colonising the Moon, and beyond, has always being a human aspiration. Technological advancements, and the discovery of a considerable source of water close to the lunar poles, has made this idea even more appealing.

But how close is China to actually achieving this goal?

If we focus on the technology currently available, China could start building a base on the Moon today.

The first lunar base

The first lunar base would likely be an unmanned facility run by automated robotics – similar to Amazon warehouses – to ensure that the necessary infrastructures and support systems are fully operational before people arrive.

The lunar environment is susceptible to deep vacuum conditions, strong temperature fluctuations and solar radiation, among other conditions hostile to humans. More importantly, we have yet to fully understand the long term impact on the human body of being in space, and on the Moon.

Seeds taken to the Moon by the Chang'e-4 mission have now reportedly sprouted. This is the first time plants have been grown on the Moon, paving the way for a future food farm on the lunar base.

Building a lunar base is no different than building the first oil rig out in the ocean. The logistics of moving construction parts must be considered, feasibility studies must be conducted and, in this case, soil samples must be tested.

China has taken the first step by examining the soil of the lunar surface. This is necessary for building an underground habitat and supporting infrastructure that will shield the base from the harsh surface conditions.

3D printed everything

Of all the possible technologies for building a lunar base, 3D printing offers the most effective strategy. 3D printing on Earth has revolutionised manufacturing productivity and efficiency, reducing both waste and cost.

China’s vision is to develop the capability to 3D print both inside and outside of the lunar base. 3D printers have the potential to make everything from daily items, like drinking cups, to repair parts for the base.

But 3D printing in space is a real challenge. It will require new technologies that can operate in the microgravity environment of the Moon. 3D printing machines that are able to shape parts in the vacuum of space must be developed.

New materials are required

We know that Earth materials, such as fibre optics, change properties once they are in space. So materials that are effective on Earth, might not be effective on the Moon.

Whatever the intended use of the 3D printed component, it will have to be resistant to the conditions of the lunar environment. So the development of printing material is crucial. Step-by-step, researchers are finding and developing new materials and technologies to address this challenge.

For example, researchers in Germany expect to have the first “ready to use” stainless steel tools to be 3D printed under microgravity in the near future. NASA also demonstrated 3D printing technology in zero gravity showing it is feasible to 3D print in space.

On a larger scale, we have seen houses being 3D printed on Earth. In a similar way, the lunar base will likely be built using prefabricated parts in combination with large-scale 3D printing.

Examples of what this might look like can be seen to entries in the 3D printed habitat challenge, which was started by NASA in 2005. The competition seeks to advance 3D printing construction technology needed to create sustainable housing solutions for Earth, the Moon, Mars and beyond.

Living on the Moon

So far, we’ve focused on the technological feasibility of building a lunar base, but we also need to consider the long term effect of lunar living on humans. To date, limited studies have been conducted to examine the biological impact on human physiology at the cellular level.

We know that the human organs, tissues and cells are highly responsive to gravity, but an understanding of how human cells function and regenerate is currently lacking.

What happens if the astronauts get sick? Will medicine from Earth still work? If astronauts are to live on the Moon, these fundamental questions need to be answered.

In the long term, 3D bioprinting of human organs and tissues will play a crucial role in sustaining lunar missions by allowing for robotic surgeries. Russia recently demonstrated the first 3D bioprinter to function under microgravity.

To infinity and beyond

Can China build a lunar base? Absolutely. Can human beings survive on the Moon and other planets for the long term? The answer to that is less clear.

What is certain is that China will use the next 10 to 15 years to develop the requisite technical capabilities for conducting manned lunar missions and set the stage for space exploration.

 
(Joshua Chou is Senior lecturer, University of Technology Sydney) 
 
(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-realistic-are-chinas-plans-to-build-a-research-station-on-the-moon-109942">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

By Joshua Chou The world is still celebrating the historic landing of China’s Chang’e-4 on the far side of the moon on January 3. China has announced its plans to follow up with three more lunar missions, laying the groundwork for a lunar base.

By Joshua Chou The world is still celebrating the historic landing of China’s Chang’e-4 on the far side of the moon on January 3. China has announced its plans to follow up with three more lunar missions, laying the groundwork for a lunar base. Colonising the Moon, and beyond, has always being a human aspiration. Technological advancements, and the discovery of a considerable source of water close to the lunar poles, has made this idea even more appealing. But how close is China to actually achieving this goal? If we focus on the technology currently available, China could start building a base on the Moon today. The first lunar base The first lunar base would likely be an unmanned facility run by automated robotics – similar to Amazon warehouses – to ensure that the necessary infrastructures and support systems are fully operational before people arrive. The lunar environment is susceptible to deep vacuum conditions, strong temperature fluctuations and solar radiation, among other conditions hostile to humans. More importantly, we have yet to fully understand the long term impact on the human body of being in space, and on the Moon. Seeds taken to the Moon by the Chang'e-4 mission have now reportedly sprouted. This is the first time plants have been grown on the Moon, paving the way for a future food farm on the lunar base. Building a lunar base is no different than building the first oil rig out in the ocean. The logistics of moving construction parts must be considered, feasibility studies must be conducted and, in this case, soil samples must be tested. China has taken the first step by examining the soil of the lunar surface. This is necessary for building an underground habitat and supporting infrastructure that will shield the base from the harsh surface conditions. 3D printed everything Of all the possible technologies for building a lunar base, 3D printing offers the most effective strategy. 3D printing on Earth has revolutionised manufacturing productivity and efficiency, reducing both waste and cost. China’s vision is to develop the capability to 3D print both inside and outside of the lunar base. 3D printers have the potential to make everything from daily items, like drinking cups, to repair parts for the base. But 3D printing in space is a real challenge. It will require new technologies that can operate in the microgravity environment of the Moon. 3D printing machines that are able to shape parts in the vacuum of space must be developed. New materials are required We know that Earth materials, such as fibre optics, change properties once they are in space. So materials that are effective on Earth, might not be effective on the Moon. Whatever the intended use of the 3D printed component, it will have to be resistant to the conditions of the lunar environment. So the development of printing material is crucial. Step-by-step, researchers are finding and developing new materials and technologies to address this challenge. For example, researchers in Germany expect to have the first “ready to use” stainless steel tools to be 3D printed under microgravity in the near future. NASA also demonstrated 3D printing technology in zero gravity showing it is feasible to 3D print in space. On a larger scale, we have seen houses being 3D printed on Earth. In a similar way, the lunar base will likely be built using prefabricated parts in combination with large-scale 3D printing. Examples of what this might look like can be seen to entries in the 3D printed habitat challenge, which was started by NASA in 2005. The competition seeks to advance 3D printing construction technology needed to create sustainable housing solutions for Earth, the Moon, Mars and beyond. Living on the Moon So far, we’ve focused on the technological feasibility of building a lunar base, but we also need to consider the long term effect of lunar living on humans. To date, limited studies have been conducted to examine the biological impact on human physiology at the cellular level. We know that the human organs, tissues and cells are highly responsive to gravity, but an understanding of how human cells function and regenerate is currently lacking. What happens if the astronauts get sick? Will medicine from Earth still work? If astronauts are to live on the Moon, these fundamental questions need to be answered. In the long term, 3D bioprinting of human organs and tissues will play a crucial role in sustaining lunar missions by allowing for robotic surgeries. Russia recently demonstrated the first 3D bioprinter to function under microgravity. To infinity and beyond Can China build a lunar base? Absolutely. Can human beings survive on the Moon and other planets for the long term? The answer to that is less clear. What is certain is that China will use the next 10 to 15 years to develop the requisite technical capabilities for conducting manned lunar missions and set the stage for space exploration. (Joshua Chou is Senior lecturer, University of Technology Sydney) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

How realistic are China’s plans to build a research station on the Moon?

By David Rothery

In a spectacular few days for solar system exploration – during which NASA whizzed the New Horizons spacecraft past the Kuiper Belt object 2009 MU69 (somewhat controversially nicknamed “Ultima Thule”) and eased OSIRIS-REx into orbit about the asteroid Bennu – the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA) has set its Chang'e 4 lander and rover down on the far side of the moon.

Chang'e is the name of the Chinese moon goddess – and Chang'e 4 builds on the success of the Chang'e 3 lander, which touched down on the moon in December 2013.

This new landing is far from being a mundane event. Only the US and the Soviet Union have ever landed spacecraft on the moon before. Those were either steered by humans onboard or, if uncrewed, relied on luck for a safe landing. Chang’e 4 used a downward-looking camera and hazard avoidance software to steer itself to a flat and sufficiently boulder-free landing spot, as it slowed its descent using retrorockets – an impressive technological feat.

Crucially, any spacecraft on the lunar far side cannot “see” the Earth, and so it can neither send to nor receive a radio signal from its control centre on Earth. To circumvent this problem, CNSA placed a relay satellite in a cunning “halo orbit” around a point in space sufficiently far beyond the moon that it can always see both the lunar far side and the Earth above the lunar horizon. The relay satellite is called Queqiao, which means “Magpie Bridge”, recalling a bridge formed by birds across the Milky Way in Chinese mythology.

This is the first time ever that anyone has landed a probe on the far side of the moon. That side sees just as much sunlight as the Earth-facing side of the moon, so is not literally a “dark side”, as it is often casually called. However, it is metaphorically dark, in that the moon’s rotation acts to keep that side facing away from the Earth as it progresses around its orbit, and its nature was unknown before the space age.

The far side of the moon differs from the near side in having far less area covered by dark lava flows (the lunar maria or “seas”). There is also a 2,500 km wide depression known as the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin occupying much of the southern part of the far side. This is probably the scar of a very ancient impact – and because it is about 8 km deep it provides a window through the moon’s crust and into the mantle that underlies it. It is special in that it never became flooded by lava like the large impact basins on the near side.

The chosen landing site, Von Karman crater, is in the north of the SPA basin about halfway between the south pole and the equator, and punches a little deeper than the surrounding basin floor. This gives the rover the best possible chance of locating rocks that originated from deeper inside the moon than have been analysed before – offering a chance to learn more about how the satellite formed.

There is some lava on the floor of Von Karman (which is what makes it a smooth, and hence fairly safe, place to land), however, but the rover will probably not have to travel far to find some lumps of rock redistributed from the exposed floor of the SPA by later, smaller, impacts. A few candidates can be seen in the first image from the surface.

Scientific measurements

The solar-powered six-wheeled rover is only 140kg, and measures 1.5 metres in its longest dimension. Its nominal lifetime is three months, but with luck, it may keep going for more than a year. Its science instruments are a camera, a ground-penetrating radar (to measure the depth and physical state of the lunar regolith or “soil”), an imaging spectrometer that will give some information on the mineralogy of the rocks and regolith, and a Swedish instrument to look at how the solar wind interacts with the surface.

This science payload is relatively modest and doesn’t take the best advantage of being inside the SPA basin. But just landing on the far side is nevertheless a notable milestone. China’s next step will probably be Chang'e 5, a mission to bring samples back to Earth from a region of apparently young lavas on the near side.

Measuring their age by laboratory techniques on Earth will provide an important piece for the jigsaw of lunar chronology, which is missing because these have never been sampled. Bizarrely, this was originally scheduled to happen before Chang'e 4, but was delayed by problems with the heavy-lift Long March 5 rocket.

China’s further steps in lunar exploration will clearly include a crewed landing, probably within five to ten years. In partial preparation for this, the static part of the Chang'e 4 lander includes a 3kg sealed biosphere within which potato seeds and silkworm eggs will be encouraged to germinate and hatch. This could help unveil whether the carbon dioxide exhaled from the larvae can be balanced by the amount taken up by the seedlings during photosynthesis.

Ultimately, that’s one small step towards a sustainable closed ecosystem on the moon.

(David Rothery is Professor of Planetary Geosciences, The Open University)

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/china-lands-on-the-far-side-of-moon-here-is-the-science-behind-the-mission-108566">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

By David Rothery In a spectacular few days for solar system exploration – during which NASA whizzed the New Horizons spacecraft past the Kuiper Belt object 2009 MU69 (somewhat controversially nicknamed “Ultima Thule”) and eased OSIRIS-REx into orbit about the asteroid Bennu – the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA) has set its Chang'e 4 lander and rover down on the far side of the moon.

By David Rothery In a spectacular few days for solar system exploration – during which NASA whizzed the New Horizons spacecraft past the Kuiper Belt object 2009 MU69 (somewhat controversially nicknamed “Ultima Thule”) and eased OSIRIS-REx into orbit about the asteroid Bennu – the Chinese National Space Administration (CNSA) has set its Chang'e 4 lander and rover down on the far side of the moon. Chang'e is the name of the Chinese moon goddess – and Chang'e 4 builds on the success of the Chang'e 3 lander, which touched down on the moon in December 2013. This new landing is far from being a mundane event. Only the US and the Soviet Union have ever landed spacecraft on the moon before. Those were either steered by humans onboard or, if uncrewed, relied on luck for a safe landing. Chang’e 4 used a downward-looking camera and hazard avoidance software to steer itself to a flat and sufficiently boulder-free landing spot, as it slowed its descent using retrorockets – an impressive technological feat. Crucially, any spacecraft on the lunar far side cannot “see” the Earth, and so it can neither send to nor receive a radio signal from its control centre on Earth. To circumvent this problem, CNSA placed a relay satellite in a cunning “halo orbit” around a point in space sufficiently far beyond the moon that it can always see both the lunar far side and the Earth above the lunar horizon. The relay satellite is called Queqiao, which means “Magpie Bridge”, recalling a bridge formed by birds across the Milky Way in Chinese mythology. This is the first time ever that anyone has landed a probe on the far side of the moon. That side sees just as much sunlight as the Earth-facing side of the moon, so is not literally a “dark side”, as it is often casually called. However, it is metaphorically dark, in that the moon’s rotation acts to keep that side facing away from the Earth as it progresses around its orbit, and its nature was unknown before the space age. The far side of the moon differs from the near side in having far less area covered by dark lava flows (the lunar maria or “seas”). There is also a 2,500 km wide depression known as the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin occupying much of the southern part of the far side. This is probably the scar of a very ancient impact – and because it is about 8 km deep it provides a window through the moon’s crust and into the mantle that underlies it. It is special in that it never became flooded by lava like the large impact basins on the near side. The chosen landing site, Von Karman crater, is in the north of the SPA basin about halfway between the south pole and the equator, and punches a little deeper than the surrounding basin floor. This gives the rover the best possible chance of locating rocks that originated from deeper inside the moon than have been analysed before – offering a chance to learn more about how the satellite formed. There is some lava on the floor of Von Karman (which is what makes it a smooth, and hence fairly safe, place to land), however, but the rover will probably not have to travel far to find some lumps of rock redistributed from the exposed floor of the SPA by later, smaller, impacts. A few candidates can be seen in the first image from the surface. Scientific measurements The solar-powered six-wheeled rover is only 140kg, and measures 1.5 metres in its longest dimension. Its nominal lifetime is three months, but with luck, it may keep going for more than a year. Its science instruments are a camera, a ground-penetrating radar (to measure the depth and physical state of the lunar regolith or “soil”), an imaging spectrometer that will give some information on the mineralogy of the rocks and regolith, and a Swedish instrument to look at how the solar wind interacts with the surface. This science payload is relatively modest and doesn’t take the best advantage of being inside the SPA basin. But just landing on the far side is nevertheless a notable milestone. China’s next step will probably be Chang'e 5, a mission to bring samples back to Earth from a region of apparently young lavas on the near side. Measuring their age by laboratory techniques on Earth will provide an important piece for the jigsaw of lunar chronology, which is missing because these have never been sampled. Bizarrely, this was originally scheduled to happen before Chang'e 4, but was delayed by problems with the heavy-lift Long March 5 rocket. China’s further steps in lunar exploration will clearly include a crewed landing, probably within five to ten years. In partial preparation for this, the static part of the Chang'e 4 lander includes a 3kg sealed biosphere within which potato seeds and silkworm eggs will be encouraged to germinate and hatch. This could help unveil whether the carbon dioxide exhaled from the larvae can be balanced by the amount taken up by the seedlings during photosynthesis. Ultimately, that’s one small step towards a sustainable closed ecosystem on the moon. (David Rothery is Professor of Planetary Geosciences, The Open University) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

China lands on the far side of moon – here is the science behind the mission

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China plans to extract oxygen from Moon's surface: Report

A small step for China, big step for teenagers: Mars base opens for visitors

How realistic are China’s plans to build a research station on the Moon?

China lands on the far side of moon – here is the science behind the mission