Russia Plans Mine On The Moon By 2020
Russia is planning to mine a rare fuel on the
moon by 2020 with a permanent base and a heavy-cargo transport link
I try to refrain from posts looking too far into the scientific future; but, I figure this one is relevent to recent discussions of nuclear fission and fusion power plants.
Russia is planning to mine a rare fuel on the moon by 2020 with a permanent base and a heavy-cargo transport link, a Russian space official said Wednesday.
“We are planning to build a permanent base on the moon by 2015 and by 2020 we can begin the industrial-scale delivery… of the rare isotope Helium-3,” [said] Nikolai Sevastyanov.
Helium-3 is a non-radioactive isotope of helium that can be used in nuclear fusion. Rare on earth but plentiful on the moon, it is seen by some experts as an ideal fuel because it is powerful, non-polluting and generates almost no radioactive by-product.
Just don’t let the freighter get redirected on the return leg — to a strange site with leathery eggs in suspended animation.
Posted: Thu - January 26, 2006 at 01:00 PM