Granted a solar array ON the moon is not going to work half the time. But how about a solar array on a satellite around the moon? It would be cheaper to deploy.

Granted a solar array ON the moon is not going to work half the time. But how about a solar array on a satellite around the moon? It would be cheaper to deploy. Already exists. 10 kw can be generated by an array the size of a small rooftop. Getting the power to the moon is the remaining engineering challenge. And learning how to do this would have tremendous benefits for the exploration of space in general. Although current tech using masers exists, I cannot imagine why we could not use recently developed high frequency lasers to boil water on the moon to run a steam turbine. (Which we would need to get from a comet). Besides the obvious steampunk attraction of a steam engine on the moon, the presence of a large reservoir of heat energy at a stable temperature could facilitate the temperature regulation of a nearby colony. And the constant supply of energy could drive ion engines that use the dust of the moon as a reaction mass making trips to lunar orbit free. I just don’t like the idea of concentrated points of failure that are easy to subvert into weapons like a dirty bomb. We need to be cognizant of human’s ability to turn even the best invention to evil when someone gets disgruntled. Failure modes need to be assessed for any technology going forward and must include intentionally engineered ‘successful’ attempts at causing failure. If the internet were designed to thwart the dark side of humanity, we might still have the beautiful thing that existed when the internet was first created: a channel for communication free of spam, advertising, spying, but that’s another rant. If we kept commerce OFF the net, it might still be a place where humans could enjoy the benefits of fellowship. Sorry I couldn’t help myself.