r/Futurology • u/scirocco___ • 2d ago
Space NASA proves its electric moon dust shield works on the lunar surface
https://www.space.com/the-universe/moon/nasa-proves-its-electric-moon-dust-shield-works-on-the-lunar-surface10
u/scirocco___ 2d ago
Submission Statement:
New shielding technology from NASA that protects against damaging lunar dust just passed a trial run on the moon’s surface, marking an important milestone in the agency’s lunar aspirations.
The Electrodynamic Dust Shield (EDS) flew aboard Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost, the first privately funded lunar lander to make a fully successful touchdown on the moon.
After Blue Ghost’s historic landing on March 2, the EDS demonstrated the ability to remove lunar dust and dirt, known as regolith, from surfaces using electrodynamic forces. The successful test concluded on March 16.
NASA has big plans for the moon via its Artemis program, which aims to set up one or more lunar bases in the next decade or so. But regolith presents a significant issue for lunar hardware, spacesuits and human lungs, because the dust is so abrasive. So the shield technology passing this recent test is good news, the agency said.
“This milestone marks a significant step toward sustaining long-term lunar and interplanetary operations by reducing dust-related hazards to a variety of surfaces for space applications ranging from thermal radiators, solar panels and camera lenses to spacesuits, boots and helmet visors,” NASA wrote in a statement.
3
u/Skyler827 2d ago
Does anyone know how much power this takes? Also the article says that it works, but how effective is it really? And how effective does it need to be? What even is effectiveness? How can we measure these things?
2
u/skylord_luke Multiplanetary Society 1d ago
you just need to turn it on for few seconds every few hours, or whenever dust builds up too much, so not a lot of power i imagine
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u/FuturologyBot 2d ago
The following submission statement was provided by /u/scirocco___:
Submission Statement:
New shielding technology from NASA that protects against damaging lunar dust just passed a trial run on the moon’s surface, marking an important milestone in the agency’s lunar aspirations.
The Electrodynamic Dust Shield (EDS) flew aboard Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost, the first privately funded lunar lander to make a fully successful touchdown on the moon.
After Blue Ghost’s historic landing on March 2, the EDS demonstrated the ability to remove lunar dust and dirt, known as regolith, from surfaces using electrodynamic forces. The successful test concluded on March 16.
NASA has big plans for the moon via its Artemis program, which aims to set up one or more lunar bases in the next decade or so. But regolith presents a significant issue for lunar hardware, spacesuits and human lungs, because the dust is so abrasive. So the shield technology passing this recent test is good news, the agency said.
“This milestone marks a significant step toward sustaining long-term lunar and interplanetary operations by reducing dust-related hazards to a variety of surfaces for space applications ranging from thermal radiators, solar panels and camera lenses to spacesuits, boots and helmet visors,” NASA wrote in a statement.
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