Apparently, Chinese nuclear scientists are looking at lunar surface material samples brought back by the Chang'e 5 lunar exploration mission, in particular a sample is believed to contain helium-3. Helium-3 is rare on Earth and might be useful in fusion reactors.
[One] study concluded that to supply 10% of the global energy demand by 2040, roughly 200 tons of Helium-3 would be required annually. To do this would require a regolith mining rate of about 630 tons per second. This number is based on an optimistic concentration of 20 ppb helium-3 in the lunar regolith. All this translates to a requirement of between 1,700 to 2,000 helium-3 mining vehicles.
Based on these numbers, the required power for mining operations would be as high as 39 GW, with a resulting power system mass of the order of 60,000 to 200,000 tons. To support the mining operation, a fleet of three lunar ascent/descent vehicles and 22 continuous-thrust orbit-transfer vehicles would be needed. And the expected annual costs are in the trillion-dollar range.
SpaceX Wants A Moonbase Alpha
'And he had been sent with troops, supplies and bombs to command Russia's most trusted post, the Moonbase.' - L. Ron Hubbard, 1948.
Can A Human Land A SpaceX Rocket On Its Tail?
'If she starts to roll sideways — blooey! The underjets only hold you up when they’re pointing down, you know.' - Stanley G. Weinbaum, 1936.
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Gaia - Why Stop With Just The Earth?
'But the stars are only atoms in larger space, and in that larger space the star-atoms could combine to form living matter, thinking matter, couldn't they?'
Microsoft VASA-1 Creates Personal Video From A Photo
'...to build up a video picture would require, say, ten million decisions every second. Mike, you're so fast I can't even think about it. But you aren't that fast.'