The work has already begun: NASA will build the first houses on the Moon in 2040. Different scientists have confirmed the information and the name of the company that the US space agency has hired to take care of its construction has even been published.
We don’t know what the mortgages for the first houses on the Moon will be like, but NASA’s plan seems very ambitious. They are determined that these initial homes become the tool that helps astronauts who travel to this star do so with the intention of staying for long periods of time.
We had to bring together the best
From NASA, Niki Werkheiser, director of one of the agency’s main technological departments, comments that carrying out a plan like this required having the best professionals. Once they gathered the necessary talent and adopted sufficient knowledge, they would find no reason why they could not achieve their objectives. And, from what she says, it seems that they have already gathered all the experts they needed.
That leaves NASA in a position of optimism in which they affirm that they will have the first houses in 2040 and that this will open a new avenue for the colonization and exploration of the place. Not only that, but if the plans go well, it is most likely that after the Moon the sights will be set on Mars. Thus, little by little, humanity could fulfill its dream of having civilizations beyond the surface of the Earth.
This is how they are going to do it
The strategy that is being carried out includes building the houses with a 3D printer from the company ICON, which has named its technology Project Olympus. For the moment, they have carried out several tests in which they have shown that it is a viable project and that their 3D printed houses meet all the requirements. In reality, they have been printing these houses with 3D printers for years and they are getting better results every time. They started in 2018 and, this same year, they presented the new house they have built. Based on this progress, they are also preparing the construction on Earth of urbanizations that will be made up of 3D printed houses.
But what NASA is interested in is the way they use their technology on the Moon. To do this they will have to put the 3D printer on a rocket and send it to the lunar surface safely. It will not be easy in view of the weight and also because there will be some raw materials that will have to be shipped from our planet. But not all, since the plan is for the construction of the house to be carried out with cement formed with materials collected on the Moon itself. This should help the structure to be completed without depending solely on those components that are sent on the rocket.
In order to reach the necessary conclusions and ensure that this plan does not end in failure, NASA is recruiting scientists and specialists who can support ICON when developing the strategy. They want, for example, to reach the conclusion of which would be the most suitable materials to take to the Moon and combine with the lunar raw material, those that, above all, can resist the conditions and the passage of time. They will continue to rely on the opinion and work of specialists so that, in the end, they achieve their objective without obstacles.
For now, the next step is to test the Olympus Project, something that will happen in February of next year 2024. It will be the first time in which it will be checked if the 3D printer created for this objective has what it takes to be able to build houses in the Moon. But, for now, there is a lot of optimism among everyone involved. It is not bad news, since seeing humans living on the Moon is a most interesting idea.
