NASA Plans To Build Homes On Earth’s Moon By 2040
Crazy Strange Days Podcast present Crazy Strange News Episode thirty nine. Astronomers puzzled by inexplicable deep space object. Astronomers have made an exciting yet puzzling discovery, lurking some forty thousand light years away but still within the confines of our galaxy, an object that's far heavier than any known neutron star, but too light to be classified as a black hole spinning around a pulsar. In other words, the object falls into a black hole mass gap, which has confounded researchers for years. Could this latest object indicate that black holes can be lighter than just two point two solar masses, or is it the heaviest neutron star ever detected. This radio black hole binary, if confirmed, the first of its kind ever observed, could force astronomers to reconsider what we know about these kinds of celestial objects and even test Einstein's theory of general relativity itself. A pulsar black hole system will be an important target for testing theories of gravity, and a heavy neutron star will provide new insights in nuclear physics at very high densities, said University of Manchester astrophysics professor Ben Stappers, lead author of a new paper published in the journal Science, in a statement, the team used observations from the Meerkat radio telescope in South Africa to make the discovery. The object in question is orbiting a millisecond pulsar, the rapidly spinning, highly magnetized, and extremely dense remains of a collapse star. What neutron stars turn into when they collapse by either getting too heavy or smashing into another star remains the subject of much speculation. One theory suggests they turn into black holes, a gravitational well so powerful that it can even suck up light itself. According to current theories, a neutron star needs to grow to at least two point two times the mass of the Sun to collapse. Researchers, however, have determined that for them to become black holes, they'd need to be at least around five times the mass of the sum Sun. The latest discovery could shed light on this mass gap, though plenty of questions remain. We're not done with this system yet, said co author Max Plunk Institute doctoral student Urunema Dirda in the statement. Uncovering the true nature of the companion will be a turning point in our understanding of neutron stars, black holes, and whatever else might be lurking in the black hole mass gap. Always so very cool. Next up, NASA plans to build homes on Earth's Moon by twenty forty. NASA seeks to three D print building materials out of new concrete made from lunar dust, allowing for structures that could withstand the temperatures and radiation of the lunar surface. Space has been called the final frontier, Yet humanity's dreams of living beyond the stars has always been largely relegated to science fiction. It seems that dream may be closer to becoming a reality sooner than expected, however, as NASA recently announced plans to build houses on the Moon, and it may happen as soon as twenty forty, As The New York Times reported, seven NASA scientists interviewed by the outlet agreed that a twenty forty goal is achievable, provided NASA can continue to hit its benchmarks in the coming years. NASA's Director of Technology Maturation, Nikky Werkheiser, said the agency is at a pivotal moment that the new program is simultaneously like a dream sequence and an inevitability. In order to make this dream a reality, NASA has partnered with various industry leaders, universities, and private companies. Notably, NASA has partnered with the construction technology company Icon, which is working to develop a space based construction system that the agency can use to print all of the structures they would need to establish a permanent presence on the Moon, including landing pads and shelters. Icon and other prominent companies in the field have touted the benefits of three D printing as an efficient and low cost solution for housing here on Earth. Icon has shown the benefits of this technology by incorporating three D printing techniques in its construction projects, utilizing a proprieprietary material called lava crete. On the Moon, however, construction projects face another issue dust. Lunar dust is highly abrasive and toxic when inhaled. But while it certainly poses a problem for those looking to live on the Moon, some engineers also see it as a solution. Some three D printed homes on Earth, for example, are made from common soil and materials found on the surface. If the same sort of technique could be applied on the Moon, using lunar dust, then those homes and structures would have a better chance of withstanding the extreme temperatures, fluctuating levels of radiation, and micro meteorites that damage the structure that might excuse me, might damage structures made of earthly materials. Of course, it's not likely that the average American would end up living on the Moon in twenty forty. When we talk about a sustainable human presence to mean that to me, that means that you have a lunar settlement and you have people living and working on the Moon continuously, said Raymond Clinton, Junior Senior Technical Advisor of the Science and Technology Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. What that could be is only up to the imagination of entrepreneurs. Just as homes and structures need to be designed specifically for the environment on the Moon, so does anything else humanity chooses to send up. Chemistry is the same up there, but physics are different, said Patrick Sewerman, Interim Dean of the School of Architecture at Texas A and M University. And there's no home depot, so you either have to know how to use what's up there or send everything you need. Fortunately, the Marshall Space Flight Center is equipped with more than a dozen testing chambers, each one designed to simulate the same radiation and thermal vacuum conditions that they would experience in space. Icon's printer is set to be lowered into the largest chamber in February of twenty twenty four to determine if it will indeed be a viable solution for lunar construction. Over the next few decades, NASA plans to utilize these chambers to test all sorts of conceptual lunar objects after all, even and if they can create a lunar concrete from dust on the Moon. Humans need other things in their day today lives. They need places to sit, places to sleep in, doors and windows to enter and exit homes. The first thing that needs to happen is a proof of concept. Can we actually manipulate the soil on the lunar surface into a construction material? Says Jennifer Edmondson, the lead geologist at Marshall Space Flight Center for the project. We need to start this development now if we're going to realize habitats on the Moon by the twenty forty time frame, and for many NASA scientists, housing on the Moon is just the beginning. People talk about humans living on the Moon, said Ali Casmian, who is working with NASA on developing the printing material. But there's another likely scenario too. At some point on Earth, we were going to run out of resources, so establishing minds and fully automated factories on the Moon is a possibility too. Other scientists are even looking towards Mars, with the initial Moon construction project being a test run for the process and technology needed to get there. The Moon would also serve as a rest stop for future travelers venturing from Earth to Mars, and NASA believes that water from the lunar surface could one day be converted into rocket fuel. That's interesting. We've got all the right people together at the right time with a common goal, which is why I think we'll get there. Wor Kaisers said. Everyone is ready to take this step together, so if we get our core capabilities developed, there's no reason it's not possible. There you go, everyone, a short little burst, little bites of some news for you today. More science five star, rate and review wherever you get your podcasts. I would appreciate it. Share this show with your friends and family that does even better by me. I have been your host, mixed strange, and I am out of here verything about. And then any da