Related papers: Rheological Lunar Regolith Simulants
Lunar regolith, the layer of unconsolidated material covering the Moon's surface, is central to the science and technology developed for the Moon, notably related to in-situ science investigations, resource utilization, surface…
Permanent lunar settlements will rely on in situ oxygen production from regolith for life support and propulsion. While oxygen is abundant in lunar materials, it is chemically bound within metal oxides whose extractability depends strongly…
Shear strength and cohesion of granular materials are important geotechnical properties that play a crucial role in the stability and behavior of lunar and Martian regolith, as well as their terrestrial analog materials. To characterize and…
NASA has developed a "Figure of Merit" method to grade the fidelity of lunar simulants for scientific and engineering purposes. Here we extend the method to grade asteroid simulants, both regolith and cobble variety, and we apply the method…
Since the Apollo program or earlier it has been widely believed that the lunar regolith was compacted through vibrations including nearby impact events, thermal stress release in the regolith, deep moon quakes, and shallow moon quakes.…
High-fidelity simulators for the lunar surface provide a digital environment for extensive testing of rover operations and mission planning. However, current simulators focus on either visual realism or physical accuracy, which limits their…
With NASA's planned return to the moon and possibly with lunar outposts being formed, repeated landings at the same site will be necessary. Understanding rocket plume interaction with lunar and Martian surfaces is of paramount importance in…
An ancient Venusian rock could constrain that planet's history, and reveal the past existence of oceans. Such samples may persist on the Moon, which lacks an atmosphere and significant geological activity. We demonstrate that if Venus'…
We present recent improvements in the simulation of regolith sampling processes in microgravity using the numerical particle method smooth particle hydrodynamics (SPH). We use an elastic-plastic soil constitutive model for large deformation…
This paper presents the design and development of a Shear and Compression Cell (SCC) for measuring the mechanical properties of granular materials in low-gravity environments. This research is motivated by the increasing interest in…
Space weathering is an important surface process occurring on the Moon and other airless bodies, especially those that have no magnetic field. The optical effects of the Moon's space weathering have been largely investigated in the…
The prospect of establishing extra-terrestrial habitats using in situ resource utilization (ISRU) constitutes a long-term goal of multiple space agencies around the world. In this work, we investigate sintering as a potential route for…
A thorough analysis of wheel-terrain interaction is critical to ensure the safe and efficient operation of space rovers on extraterrestrial surfaces like the Moon or Mars. This paper presents an approach for developing and experimentally…
Simulation of vehicle motion in planetary environments is challenging. This is due to the modeling of complex terrain, optical conditions, and terrain-aware vehicle dynamics. One of the critical issues of typical simulators is that they…
Modeling has been developed to support the development of volatile extraction technologies for the Moon, Mars, asteroids, or other bodies. This type of modeling capability is important to avoid the high cost of multiple test campaigns in…
Lunar Laser Ranging (LLR) measurements are crucial for advanced exploration of the laws of fundamental gravitational physics and geophysics. Current LLR technology allows us to measure distances to the Moon with a precision approaching 1…
Surface porosity has been found to be an important property for small bodies. Some asteroids and comets can exhibit an extremely high surface porosity in the first millimeter layer. This layer may be produced by various processes and…
Robot-aided exploration of planetary surfaces is essential for understanding geologic processes, yet many scientifically valuable regions, such as Martian dunes and lunar craters, remain hazardous due to loose, deformable regolith. We…
We have studied several field geotechnical test instruments for their applicability to lunar soil simulants and analog soils. Their performance was evaluated in a series of tests in lunar simulants JSC-1A, NU-LHT-2M, and CHENOBI each…
In contrast to terrestrial environment, the harsh lunar environment conditions include lower gravity acceleration, ultra-high vacuum and high (low) temperature in the daytime (night-time). This paper focuses on the effects of those…