A Future Plan for the Moon: Moon-Melting
(Image Credit: NASA)
(Image Credit: Dazed)
(Image Credit: Wired)
January 1, 2025
Sare Uluöz
10th Grade
Isıkkent High School
Introduction
Space has always been of interest to people, and this curiosity is what first led us to explore it. One of humanity’s most significant discoveries is the moon. The moon is Earth's closest neighbor and one of the most popular destinations for space exploration. For a while, many countries competed to be the first to go to the moon, the first being the Soviet Union in 1959 with its Luna 2 Spacecraft. Today, scientists are thinking about melting the moon, and this idea is not a theory or a mad scientist’s idea. It is a real concept and scientists are already taking action. But two questions remain: Why? And how?
Why Do NASA Scientists Want to Melt the Moon?
There are two reasons to want to melt the moon. The first is to create roads and minimize the moon dust. The second is the extraction of sources such as oxygen and metals.
Minimizing moon dust is more important than it seems. Moondust affects space machines and space suits. Moondust is also sticky and harmful to humans because it is full of radiation from the sun. Moondust particles are also so small that they can clog up some machines. In previous lunar missions, moon dust eroded space suits, clogged up important machinery, and made it difficult for them to work. As a result, scientists decided to melt the moon and create roads. By melting the moon, they will have the opportunity to reshape its surface and eradicate the moon dust.
The second goal is to use moon dust as a source of lucrative materials. Moondust (lunar soil) is more than we see. Lunar soil is made of 43% oxygen, 21% silicon, 13% iron, 8% calcium, 6% aluminum, 5% magnesium, and 4% other elements. There is one element that is conspicuous at first sight: oxygen. We used to think oxygen was almost non-existent on the moon. But research suggests the opposite.
On the left side, there is an image of a simulated lunar soil or regolith pile; the left part is a lunar soil, and the right side is the same pile, but with all the oxygen removed, leaving a mixture of metal alloys. Future lunar settlers could use both oxygen and metal. Lunar regolith is 40-45% oxygen by weight. This makes it the single most abundant element, researcher Beth Lomax of the University of Glasgow explains.
(Image Credit: European Space Agency)
How Would Scientists Actually Melt the Moon?
Scientists are developing a device to melt the moon, but it is not an easy job because there are lots of features. However, the Gaseous Lunar Oxygen from Regolith Electrolysis (GaLORE) project team won an award for its melting technology. In addition, GaLORE is advancing the technology to heat the regolith to more than 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit. This device, using the power of the sun to act as a laser, will cause a chemical reaction that splits into oxygen and metals. The oxygen that comes out will be used to support astronaut life and act as an oxidizer for fuel. Additionally, the metal that is released will be used for infrastructure, to 3D print vehicles and tools. These will sustain and expand human presence on the moon.
(Image Credit: Universe Space Tech)
How Close Are We?
The GaLORE project team created a 12-kilowatt carbon dioxide laser that serves as a light source, meaning they are fairly close to melting the moon. They aim to melt simulated moondust into a glassy solid surface as a way of constructing paved surfaces on the face of the moon. European Space Agency Materials Engineer Advenit Makaya states, “In practice, we would not bring a carbon dioxide laser on the Moon. Instead, this current laser is serving as a light source for our experiments, to take the place of lunar sunlight which could be concentrated using a Fresnel lens a couple of meters across to produce equivalent melting on the surface of the Moon.”
Reference Sources
Dazed. “Now Scientists Want to Melt the Moon.” Dazed, 17 Oct. 2023,
Ferreira, Becky. “Scientists Want to Melt the Moon to Create Roads and Tested It with Lasers.” VICE, 12 Oct. 2023,
“Laser Used to Melt Moondust.” Esa.int, 2023,
www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2023/10/Laser_used_to_melt_moondust
“NASA Kennedy to Develop Tech to Melt Moon Dust, Extract Oxygen - NASA.” NASA, 30 Aug. 2019,
www.nasa.gov/general/nasa-kennedy-to-develop-tech-to-melt-moon-dust-extract-oxygen/.
“Oxygen and Metal from Lunar Regolith.” ESA,
https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2019/10/Oxygen_and_metal_from_lunar_regolith.
Torgersen, Eivind. “Making Oxygen on the Moon.” Norwegian Sci Tech News, SINTEF, 18 Jan. 2023,
https://www.sintef.no/en/latest-news/2023/making-oxygen-on-the-moon/.
Vecker, Tobias. “Scientists Plan to Melt Moondust to Make Lunar Roads.” Sciencefocus.com, 2023,
https://www.sciencefocus.com/news/laser-moondust-lunar-roads.