I-Corps: Space Kinetic

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the potential development of power options and logistics services on the moon and other low-gravity environments. The innovation could launch capsules containing materials (like oxygen or water etc.) to potential customers across the lunar surface. At the same time, the kinetic energy of each capsule could also be converted to usable electricity to power space operations.

By reducing potential launch costs while using the same infrastructure to transfer material, resources, and energy the services may be overall less expensive. Ultimately, if the technology can reduce the energy and resource transfer costs on the moon, this innovation may support further construction, lunar mining, exploration, travel, and tourism potentially enabling economic growth in space.

This I-Corps project is based on developing logistics services and power options for cables and lunar rovers on the moon and other space environments. Cabled energy systems can be heavy making them costly to transport from the Earth to the moon (potentially over $1 million per kilogram of load carried) whilst energy beaming solutions to power devices and equipment on the moon such as lasers and microwaves can be inefficient at powering devices and equipment over long distances, can have high capital costs, and may have limited network effects.

Furthermore, hybrid solutions combining cables and power beaming may add risk by increasing mission complexity and potential points of failure. Rover-based systems for transferring equipment and materials can also be heavy and time-consuming. By potentially developing an integrated, cable-less energy and material transfer system that may be lighter, faster, and able to handle more volume, it may therefore be more efficient than cabled systems or Rovers.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.