If you had a chance to live on the moon, do you will live there? Of course, not as one of the first settlers, but yes, as a citizen of a fully functioning and own moon city.
Certain questions should be asked, such as what we could do in our daily lives or if they will be important.
Can we live on the moon?
Currently, humans cannot live on the Moon without significant technological advancements and infrastructure. The Moon has no atmosphere, no breathable air, and no protection from harmful radiation from the Sun and space. The temperature on the Moon also varies greatly, ranging from extremely hot during the day to extremely cold at night.
However, there are ongoing efforts to establish a human presence on the Moon in the future. NASA’s Artemis program aims to land the first woman and the next man on the Moon by 2024 and establish a sustainable human presence on the Moon by the end of the decade. Private companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin are also working on developing technologies to enable human exploration and settlement on the Moon.
To establish a human presence on the Moon, significant infrastructure would need to be developed, including habitats, life support systems, and power systems. These systems would need to be able to withstand the harsh lunar environment and provide a safe and habitable environment for humans.
While living on the Moon presents many challenges, it also offers many potential benefits, such as access to valuable resources such as water and helium-3, which could be used for energy production. It could also serve as a stepping stone for further exploration and colonization of the solar system.
The Shackleton Dome
During the year 2005, a design was a great emotion within the aerospace sector, this model was the Shackleton Dome. It has a concrete measurement of 25 miles in diameter and 5,000 feet high with a dome that is going to arch over one of the craters of the moon, thus, it could house the first city of the moon.
But, would this design be feasible? Keep in mind that domes are very strong structures and it is undoubtedly the best way to maintain air pressure so that people can be there without problems, so this type of construction would be a good option.
The domes that are interconnected and are smaller, are based on this design, they would be very economical and quick to build domes. The materials used to build these types of domes are glass, titanium that is anchored to bedrock, thus allowing cities to prosper inland.
Cities in the Moon
The cities themselves will be ultramodern. It does not have to do with stylistic taste, this is because aluminum and silicon are the main components of glass, these elements are found within the anorthite.
The anorthite is a mineral that is on the moon and would be a very important material to be able to use it, especially in construction. With the landscape around us, it can be used freely without problems.
Another possible material that could be used for the construction of these futuristic cities would be the geopolymer, it is very similar to concrete. It is created from two additional materials, the dirty moon and your urine.
With all this, now we should ask ourselves how life in these types of cities would be. You have to know that we will not experience normal days nights like on Earth. A lunar day is a total of 29 Earth days. This means that there will be two weeks of darkness and another two light.
Although cities would be built around the Moon’s poles, only about 4 consecutive days of darkness on Earth will be experienced at a time.
Diet in Moon Cities
Another thing that we must change would be the diet. This is due to resources that are finite and space that is limited as well. In lunar cities, we will not have the possibility of having domestic animals dedicated to food production, so the final diet would be based on plants.
It may be possible that you have the option to eat fish, but if you want another type of meat, it would come frozen from Earth, something that would not be very practical. The largest industry in the moon would be dedicated to extracting helium-3, it is a renewable source of energy, along with other materials that we find there.
If you have a career like that of a scientist, an engineer or a miner, you can see how the Earth continues to use the precious resources they have, but yes, by being on the moon, the demand for helium-3 will grow.
Helium-3 is a very efficient source of fuel in fusion reactors, typically selling for about $ 40,000 an ounce. Its equivalent in kilograms would be 22,700, something that will enhance the United States for at least 1 year. It is a long-standing resource on Earth, but it is found in abundance on the moon.
Lunar tourism
So this type of export combined with space and lunar tourism will bring great wealth to the cities of the Moon. In this way, the very expensive price that must be paid initially for settlement and construction can be paid. The estimate that NASA has made to build this type of lunar city would be around 10 billion dollars, although of course, there is an additional cost of about 2 billion dollars per year.
The project to build cities on the moon should be an international combination of all kinds of associations, both corporate and government. Currently, certain jobs prevent any country from owning the moon to themselves.
If there was only one country building its city there, it would be frowned upon, even as a violation of treaties. So if there was only one interesting country, the citizens of these lunar cities could try to form their autonomous nation when they are self-sufficient.
science fiction and live on the moon
Although the dome-built centers of the Moon sound like science fiction to us now, in our not-too-distant future, it will be quite realistic. Being able to establish themselves on the Moon, opened up all opportunities for scientists, science, and engineering, in addition to knowing other ways of thinking and including the new space exploration.
We may even need to create a space base that is viable and that serves to connect to other different parts of the Universe.
But before all that, you have to build those megacities on the Moon. Although first, smaller initial colonies, to involve with them their galaxy and have no obstacles.
Projects for living on the moon
As of now, there are no permanent human settlements on the moon, but there are several proposed projects and plans for living on the moon in the future. Some of the most notable projects include:
- Artemis Program: This is a project by NASA that aims to land the first woman and the next man on the moon by 2024. The program also aims to establish a sustainable human presence on the moon by 2028.
- Lunar Gateway: This is a proposed space station that will orbit the moon and serve as a staging point for missions to the lunar surface. The Lunar Gateway will also serve as a hub for scientific research and exploration.
- Moon Village: This is a proposed international lunar base that would be built on the moon. The Moon Village would be a collaborative effort between various countries and organizations and would serve as a permanent human settlement on the moon.
- Blue Moon: This is a project by Blue Origin, a private space company founded by Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Blue Moon aims to develop a lunar lander that can transport people and cargo to the moon.
- SpaceX Starship: This is a project by SpaceX, a private space company founded by Elon Musk. The Starship is a reusable spacecraft that is designed to transport people and cargo to the moon and other destinations in the solar system.
These are just a few of the many proposed projects for living on the moon. As technology advances and space exploration continues, we can expect to see more ambitious plans for human settlements on the moon and beyond.