On 29th April 2015 Dr Johann-Dietrich Woerner, former head of DLR, announced his intention to align the European Space Agency (ESA) to develop a base on the far side of the Moon for radio astronomy and other purposes. On 1st July 2015 Dr. Woerner assumed his new office as Director General of ESA. We believe this plan is an excellent foundation for a major expansion of space innovation within Europ
e. We encourage ESA to consider the benefits of the lunar lift which will greatly reduce the cost of construction of the far side lunar base. A lunar lift investment pays for itself after twenty payload landing cycles. The far side of the Moon is recommended as a radio quiet zone by the International Telecommunications Union under ITU-R RA.479. A high priority to enable a lunar far-side radio astronomy facility is for the international community to legally adopt the ITU recommendation to protect the radio environment of the far side of the Moon. The Earth is a major source of radio noise and interference, from TV, radio, electric motors, car spark plugs, etc. This makes Radio astronomy on Earth difficult. The far side of the Moon is permanently shielded from human radio transmissions, and is the best place in the solar system for a Radio Astronomy Base. The far-side lunar radio astronomy base would be located near the lunar equator at the 180 degree longitude point, which is an ideal location for anchoring a lunar lift tether. The Lunar Lift Alliance is working to pursue all the above objectives. We invite collaboration of all interested parties.
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About the Lunar Lift System
The Lunar Space Lift (LL) is an extremely long tether extending from the lunar surface through the Earth-Moon L1 or L2 Lagrange gravity balance point (EML1/2) and relatively deep into Earth’s gravity well. The major components of the LL prototype include the Ribbon, the Anchor Platform on the lunar surface, the Supply Depot at EML1/2, and the Counterweight (CW) at the far end. This revolutionary first space lift structure in the solar system can be built of existing polymer materials and can be launched on a single vehicle. The LL prototype, would be able to lift roughly 2 tons of lunar samples per year, and deploy a similar quantity of equipment onto the lunar surface, revolutionizing the transport of material to and from the Moon. It will provide:
· Two-way transportation from LEO to the lunar surface using solar-electric propulsion
· 2400 kg of lunar material to LEO, and 2400 kg of supplies soft-landed on the Moon each year
· Capability to enable low cost construction of ESA Lunar Farside Radio Observatory
· Commercial lunar mining of valuable minerals and commodities
· Geodetic and seismic networks for precise laser ranging and Moon quake studies
· A whole-Moon telescope at L1 and/or L2 for constant monitoring of transient lunar events
· Delivery of lunar rovers for extensive robotic exploration of the lunar surface, and
· Opening the way for low-cost lunar exploration, development, and resource recovery
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About Dr. Johann-Dietrich Woerner
Johann-Dietrich ‘Jan’ Woerner became the ESA Director General on 1 July 2015. Before joining ESA as Director General, Jan Woerner was head of the German delegation to ESA from 2007 to 2015 and served as Chairman of the ESA Council from 2012 to 2014. Detailed bio: http://www.esa.int/…/Johann-Dietrich_Woerner_ESA_Director_G…
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About the Lunar Lift Alliance
The Lunar Lift Alliance was formed in June 2015 and comprises several organizations and individuals who support the goal of five-fold reduction in lunar landing costs using a lunar lift tether system. Current members of the LLA include:
Asteroid Initiatives LLC, USA
Global Space Organization, USA and international
International Space Elevator Consortium, USA and international
Leeward Space Foundation, USA and international
Space Society of Silicon Valley, USA
BT Public Relations, Romania
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About Charles Frank Radley
Charles Radley is a NASA consultant who has made recently multiple appearances on TV and radio in Romania describing the Lunar Lift, including: The News Program of the National Romanian Television (TVR1), ProTV, Nasul TV, Radio Romania, ProFM Radio:
http://stirileprotv.ro/…/ilikeit-in-viitor-am-putea-avea-un…
http://stiri.tvr.ro/un-savant-american-cauta-in-romania-tal…
http://www.nasul.tv/specialist-nasa-la-nasul-tv-in-citiva-…/
http://www.profm.ro/…/lsquo-liftul-pana-la-luna-rsquo-expli…
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Please contact:
Romania: Geo Scripcariu, Email: [email protected] Telephone: +40745-09.61.91
USA: Charles Radley, Email: [email protected] Telephone: +1-551-579-4686
