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The Moon, which has a stable orbit and is the closest solid celestial body to the Earth, is considered highly important as a feedstock. Unlike primitive meteorites, which are relatively abundant in space, it is expected to contain crustally enriched elements in high concentrations.
Recent exploration has indicated the possibility of volatile concentrations, particularly in the polar regions. These volatiles are significant in terms of life support and space resources such as for acquiring fuels, solvents, and reducing agents. Consequently, various national space agencies and private companies are planning and conducting numerous explorations to understand these volatiles and determine their potential for future use.
This page discusses water ice, which is considered of particular importance as a lunar resource, and its potential availability for resource utilization.
Position of the TSUKIMI project in lunar resource development
Position of the TSUKIMI project in lunar resource development
The general flow of resource development begins with Geoscience, followed by the Exploration phase, Discovery phase, Development phase, and finally, the Production phase. Regarding lunar resources, we are still in the Exploration/Discovery phase, and the selection of target areas and even the candidate areas are ambiguous. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct both broad and detailed subsurface surveys simultaneously.
The biggest advantage of the TSUKIMI project is its ability to observe the entire lunar subsurface with the same instrument. In future orbital surveys planned until 2024, only the neutron spectrometer can obtained the subsurface information, and this project has strong originality. On the other hand, high-precision data on the presence of ice, the chemical composition, and mineral abundance of regolith are expected to be obtained at several points through landing and rover exploration such as LUPEX and CLPS. If data from the entire lunar subsurface can be obtained through the TSUKIMI project, it will be possible to quickly and comprehensively expand high-resolution analysis combined with the results of specific locations obtained by landing probes/rovers to the entire lunar surface. This will become an extremely important map in terms of future resource exploration and utilization. In the final phase of the TSUKIMI project, we are considering conducting observations with high resolution observed from lower altitude. Compared the data obtained from landing probes and rovers with the data obtained from the orbital survey, specific areas requiring more detailed observations are expected to emerge. If high-resolution observations can be conducted in the final phase aimed at such areas, there is a possibility of discovering areas with concentrated useful materials near the surface, which could lead to the creation of a map of lunar resources that can be called a unique treasure map.
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