Moon, witnesses precious about the mysteries of the solar system

The Moon, the goal of a new international race is seen as a precious witness to the history and mysteries of the Solar System since its birth 4.5 million years ago.

(Artwork: cyberwitch) The only natural satellite of the Earth at 384.402 km away, the Moon is still mysterious even though there have been 10 US-based missions on this planet within the framework of the program. Apollo from 1968 to 1972.

A recent report by the American Academy of Science affirmed that returning to the Moon will help carry out new scientific research and supplement knowledge about the solar system.

On the surface of the Moon there was a thick layer of dust called regolith, the result of meteorite collisions. This dust contains oxygen that is easy to exploit and hydrogen but with less content.

Oxygen and hydrogen can be used to fuel rocket engines, greatly reducing the cost of space exploration and allowing the launch of spacecraft outside the Earth's atmosphere.

Regolith also contains silicon that can be used to make solar panels. Many companies have investigated the possibility of making these batteries to supply power to future Moon space stations.

The Moon's surface also stores many helium-3, a rare non-radioactive isotope on Earth, ideal for fusion reactions.

The Moon can hold up to 1 million tons of helium-3 while just 25 tons is enough to meet the needs of the US or the European Union.

This potential has led Russia's Energia Space Corporation to reveal from early 2006 a project to establish a permanent base on the Moon in the next 10 years and to conquer helium-3 precious isotopes around 2020.

However, this resource exploitation technology is still at a new stage of preparation.

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