The ESA is developing the largest lunar test bed. ESA is building a lunar simulation like NASA’s ‘Mars Yard’ to test Mars landers.
European Space Agency (ESA) Lunar Test Bed Project: Mining Greenland’s Anorthosite for Moon-Like Samples
The agency and Lumina Sustainable Materials are mining anorthosite in Greenland for lunar-like rock samples. UK VULCAN and German LUNA scientists are working on this project.
Moon exploration is challenging due to fine, powdery regolith clogging landers’ working parts. A LUNA German Aerospace Centre test bench will imitate lunar regolith using VULCAN terrestrial samples.
The team plans to use 20 tons of light-colored anorthosite to produce a 700-square-meter lunar mare surface and a smaller bed like the lunar highland. The mining process uses a novel technology that avoids chemicals, allowing safe waste disposal and meeting ESA’s sustainability goals.
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ESA Learns Dust Management for Lunar Simulation Tests
The mining and processing showed how to handle huge dust. Lumina taught ESA how to regulate dusty test settings. We don’t know when the lunar surface simulation test sites will open in 2024.
These ambitious projects demonstrate ESA’s dedication to space exploration, particularly long-term human and robotic Moon missions. With a full lunar test bed, scientists and engineers hope to address lunar exploration’s challenging issues and boost future missions.
READ ALSO: ESA is Stockpiling Simulated Regolith for the Ultimate Lunar Playground.