We Finally Know How Much Radiation There Is on The Moon, And It's Not Great News

[Eugene]

Related: First measurements of the radiation dose on the lunar surface (Science Advances)

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Source: Agence France Presse

We Finally Know How Much Radiation There Is on The Moon, And It's Not Great News

AFP 26 SEPTEMBER 2020

As the US prepares to return humans to the Moon this decade, one of the biggest dangers future astronauts will face is space radiation that can cause lasting health effects, from cataracts to cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.​

Though the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 1970s proved it was safe for people to spend a few days on the lunar surface, NASA did not take daily radiation measurements that would help scientists quantify just how long crews could stay.

This question was resolved Friday after a Chinese-German team published in the journal Science Advances the results of an experiment carried out by China's Chang'E 4 lander in 2019.

"The radiation of the Moon is between two and three times higher than what you have on the ISS (International Space Station)," co-author Robert Wimmer-Schweingruber, an astrophysicist at the University of Kiel told AFP.

"So that limits your stay to approximately two months on the surface of the Moon," he added, once the radiation exposure from the roughly week-long journey there, and week back, is taken into account.​

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Read more: https://www.sciencealert.com/scientists-predict-how-long-humans-can-survive-radiation-on-the-moon

[Wounded Bear]

1. So, basically, any station we build there will have to be underground...

deep underground.

[Javaman]

4. yup. ACC was right. nt

[kurtcagle]

2. Lava Tubes

Most proposals I've seen for lunar colonies basically assume that they will be utilizing subterranean lava tubes, assuming that they exist. Far easier to seal in the event of an atmospheric breach, shielded from solar radiation, and away from the negative effects of lunar dust, which is quite abrasive. The other, long term issue with lunar colonies is tissue destabilization due to the microgravity climate. The moon is not an ideal body to colonize, though it makes for a great launch pad, as you need a much smaller amount of fuel to escape lunar gravity.

[Gore1FL]

3. The launch-pad is a great stepping-stone

In Kerbal Space Program ( https://www.kerbalspaceprogram.com/ ) I use an outer moon to fuel orbiting ships and send them on interstellar missions. It saves me an inordinate amount of Delta-V and allows for much larger missions with smaller crafts.

[cstanleytech]

5. Stability might be a concern with those so they might want to look instead at something they

excavate and build a base.
Assuming of course that it is worth it which I doubt because imo the focus should be more on developing faster methods of travel before we venture further into space due to the current costs.