We have developed microwave water extraction technology for getting water and other volatiles from planetary surfaces such as the lunar poles. This in-space water can be used to produce rocket propellant. The extremely high Earth launch costs have greatly limited space exploration. It costs approximately $10,000 to put one kilogram of payload into orbit. To put payloads onto the moon or Mars is orders of magnitude more expensive, approximately $100,000 to the moon and $1,000,000 to the surface of Mars. Because of Earth’s gravity, the vast majority of the rocket is propellant, engines and structure to get the payload into orbit. If Earth were just a little larger it would be “impossible” to get into orbit using chemical rocket propulsion. Being outside Earth’s gravitational well, In-Space resources are inherently valuable. The low hanging fruit of in-situ resources is water. The lunar poles have billions of tons of water ice in the permafrost, trapped by the extreme cold, for billions of years. We have developed microwave in-situ heating methods for extracting this water without having to excavate the lunar ermafrost. The water can be used to replace expendables (water and oxygen) at man tended lunar outposts and to make rocket propellant for ascent/descent from the lunar surface. We subscribe to the “Vegas Principle”, What is mined in space stays in space.
Microwave the Moon for Water
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