4 ms·

What about... Being inside a building? You know, since humans need atmosphere anyway?

Akronymus 4y ago
Any activity that requires going outside will inevitably get some amount of dust through the airlock. So, it is going to slow it down by a lot, but not stop it.
- WJW 4y ago
  Well, vacuum cleaners are a thing and could probably be exported to the moon to take care of any dust getting inside. The dust is extra abrasive because it hasn't been exposed to weathering due to the lack of athmosphere and so has kept all the sharp edges. As soon as it gets inside and gets chafed/bumped around, many of the sharper edges will abrade. Of all the challenges for making humans live on the moon, sharp dust is one of the smaller ones.
  - peterpost2 4y ago
    Could some sort of robotic vacuum autonomously suck it up and get rid of the harshest of edges. At least in the regions nearest to the base where active work is being done
  - Akronymus 4y ago
    Thats a pretty good objection. As is often the case, the simple solution eluded me.
  - JohnHaugeland 4y ago
    Yes let's vacuum billions of years of dust from the entire moon
    - Akronymus 4y ago
      Which isn't what GP suggested at all. > Well, vacuum cleaners are a thing and could probably be exported to the moon to take care of any dust getting inside. Specifically that last part.
      - JohnHaugeland 4y ago
        Yes, and how did it get inside? And what's stopping the rest? And where do you put what's captured? They're the same statement once you think about it some or have some domain experience
        Akronymus 4y ago
        Not really the same thing. While, sure, there will always come more, it more like dust on earth. And you can just put it back outside. What your comment seemed to suggest, was trying to preemptively remove all the dust.
        JohnHaugeland 4y ago
        That's exactly what you have to do when the dust is all glass powder Moon encampments need to be clean rooms with respect to the outside It's a little like being underwater in a dome. If you see stuff from the outside inside, there's a dangerous leak. Oh, except for that this dust kills you if you breathe it in, which water doesn't
        WJW 4y ago
        > how did it get inside Some of it stuck to the outside of spacesuits and/or robots when they went outside. Neither should be going beyond some intermediate garage area anyway, just like you don't usually park your car in the bedroom. > And what's stopping the rest? The airlock door? There's no wind on the moon, so it won't blow inside on its own. > And where do you put what's captured? Well, I'd assume that once your vacuum cleaners are full you'd take a moon-lorry and dump the lot into a nearby crater or something. If it's as sharp as advertised, the sharp edges might make it well-suited for use in concrete as well. In any case you don't have to keep the entire moon clean, only the inside of the base. It doesn't seem to be a terrible burden to clean the suits and rovers after every expedition, more like something that you plan to do anyway because you want to keep those expensive things well-maintained.

Any activity that requires going outside will inevitably get some amount of dust through the airlock. So, it is going to slow it down by a lot, but not stop it.

WJW 4y ago
Well, vacuum cleaners are a thing and could probably be exported to the moon to take care of any dust getting inside. The dust is extra abrasive because it hasn't been exposed to weathering due to the lack of athmosphere and so has kept all the sharp edges. As soon as it gets inside and gets chafed/bumped around, many of the sharper edges will abrade. Of all the challenges for making humans live on the moon, sharp dust is one of the smaller ones.
- peterpost2 4y ago
  Could some sort of robotic vacuum autonomously suck it up and get rid of the harshest of edges. At least in the regions nearest to the base where active work is being done
- Akronymus 4y ago
  Thats a pretty good objection. As is often the case, the simple solution eluded me.
- JohnHaugeland 4y ago
  Yes let's vacuum billions of years of dust from the entire moon
  - Akronymus 4y ago
    Which isn't what GP suggested at all. > Well, vacuum cleaners are a thing and could probably be exported to the moon to take care of any dust getting inside. Specifically that last part.
    - JohnHaugeland 4y ago
      Yes, and how did it get inside? And what's stopping the rest? And where do you put what's captured? They're the same statement once you think about it some or have some domain experience
      - Akronymus 4y ago
        Not really the same thing. While, sure, there will always come more, it more like dust on earth. And you can just put it back outside. What your comment seemed to suggest, was trying to preemptively remove all the dust.
        JohnHaugeland 4y ago
        That's exactly what you have to do when the dust is all glass powder Moon encampments need to be clean rooms with respect to the outside It's a little like being underwater in a dome. If you see stuff from the outside inside, there's a dangerous leak. Oh, except for that this dust kills you if you breathe it in, which water doesn't
      - WJW 4y ago
        > how did it get inside Some of it stuck to the outside of spacesuits and/or robots when they went outside. Neither should be going beyond some intermediate garage area anyway, just like you don't usually park your car in the bedroom. > And what's stopping the rest? The airlock door? There's no wind on the moon, so it won't blow inside on its own. > And where do you put what's captured? Well, I'd assume that once your vacuum cleaners are full you'd take a moon-lorry and dump the lot into a nearby crater or something. If it's as sharp as advertised, the sharp edges might make it well-suited for use in concrete as well. In any case you don't have to keep the entire moon clean, only the inside of the base. It doesn't seem to be a terrible burden to clean the suits and rovers after every expedition, more like something that you plan to do anyway because you want to keep those expensive things well-maintained.