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Hm, hydrolox could indeed be possible. Didn’t think of that. But you’d still need a very large number of missions to make construction and maintenance of the m

Hm, hydrolox could indeed be possible. Didn’t think of that. But you’d still need a very large number of missions to make construction and maintenance of the moon base cheaper than just directly going where you want to go. It’s probably going to be a while before a moon base makes sense for economical reasons. Also, the moon does not have a dark side. It has a far side that never faces the earth, but the sun shines there just like it does on the other side.

TeMPOraL 9y ago
> you’d still need a very large number of missions to make construction and maintenance of the moon base cheaper than just directly going where you want to go. We can't forever just launch point-to-point missions from Earth's surface. The Moon meshes up well with industrial space activities around Earth, which we'll need anyway, and which'll create plenty of demand around itself for missions and resources. > It has a far side that never faces the earth, but the sun shines there just like it does on the other side. Sure, but a) lack of atmosphere while still having stable ground underneath helps, plus b) lack of RF noise from Earth would really help radiotelescopes, which was what I was thinking about when writing my previous comment.
- gnarbarian 9y ago
  >The Moon meshes up well with industrial space activities around Earth, which we'll need anyway, and which'll create plenty of demand around itself for missions and resources. This is essentially my argument. Short term it doesn't offer many advantages but without it, it makes the really big and cool industrial space projects more difficult.
oldcynic 9y ago
Why can't it make sense on economic grounds? I would imagine that once there was a moonbase there would be a number of rather wealthy people who would like to visit. After all if Blue Planet can cause interest in luxury $4m submarines[0] I don't see why the moon would be an exception. Who knows, seeing Earth from outside might even trigger some activity to keep it viable for us! [0] https://www.slashgear.com/aston-martins-next-luxury-vehicle-is-a-submarine-28502041/ https://www.slashgear.com/aston-martins-next-luxury-vehicle-...
- TeMPOraL 9y ago
  You can't hope to maintain a Moon settlement off the back of ultra-rich peoples' vacation fads. For one, the whole scheme would collapse once the super-rich get bored. A moon base needs better and more stable funding, and for that it needs a reason. Science will not be enough, but the demands of a cislunar economy (propellant, off-world settlements for workets) just might.

TeMPOraL 9y ago

> you’d still need a very large number of missions to make construction and maintenance of the moon base cheaper than just directly going where you want to go. We can't forever just launch point-to-point missions from Earth's surface. The Moon meshes up well with industrial space activities around Earth, which we'll need anyway, and which'll create plenty of demand around itself for missions and resources. > It has a far side that never faces the earth, but the sun shines there just like it does on the other side. Sure, but a) lack of atmosphere while still having stable ground underneath helps, plus b) lack of RF noise from Earth would really help radiotelescopes, which was what I was thinking about when writing my previous comment.

gnarbarian 9y ago
>The Moon meshes up well with industrial space activities around Earth, which we'll need anyway, and which'll create plenty of demand around itself for missions and resources. This is essentially my argument. Short term it doesn't offer many advantages but without it, it makes the really big and cool industrial space projects more difficult.

oldcynic 9y ago

Why can't it make sense on economic grounds? I would imagine that once there was a moonbase there would be a number of rather wealthy people who would like to visit. After all if Blue Planet can cause interest in luxury $4m submarines[0] I don't see why the moon would be an exception. Who knows, seeing Earth from outside might even trigger some activity to keep it viable for us! [0] https://www.slashgear.com/aston-martins-next-luxury-vehicle-is-a-submarine-28502041/ https://www.slashgear.com/aston-martins-next-luxury-vehicle-...

TeMPOraL 9y ago
You can't hope to maintain a Moon settlement off the back of ultra-rich peoples' vacation fads. For one, the whole scheme would collapse once the super-rich get bored. A moon base needs better and more stable funding, and for that it needs a reason. Science will not be enough, but the demands of a cislunar economy (propellant, off-world settlements for workets) just might.