Hard-nosed Advice to Lunar Prospectors

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/22may_beaty.htm

Hard-nosed Advice to Lunar Prospectors
NASA Science News
May 22, 2006

May 22, 2006: Long before David Beaty became associate Chief Scientist
for NASA's Mars Program, he was a prospector. Beaty spent 10 years
surveying remote parts of Earth for precious metals and another 12
years
hunting for oil.

And this qualifies him to work for NASA? Precisely.

Beaty has the kind of experience NASA needs as the agency prepares to
implement the Vision for Space Exploration. "Mining and prospecting are
going to be key skills for settlers on the Moon and Mars," he explains.
"We can send them air and water and fuel from Earth, but eventually,
they'll have to learn to live off the land, using local resources to
meet their needs."

On the Moon, for instance, mission planners hope to find water frozen
in
the dark recesses of polar craters. Water can be split into hydrogen
for
rocket fuel and oxygen for breathing. Water is also good for drinking
and as a bonus it is one of the best known radiation shields. "In many
ways," notes Beaty, "water is key to a sustained human presence." Ice
mining on the Moon could become a big industry.

Beaty has learned a lot from his long career prospecting, exploring and
mining on Earth. Now, with an eye on other worlds, he has distilled
four
pieces of wisdom he calls "Dave's Postulates" for prospectors working
anywhere in the solar system:

Postulate #1: "Wishful thinking is no substitute for scientific
evidence."

"On Earth, banks won't lend money for less than proven reserves. From a
bank's viewpoint, anything less than proven is not really there. This
lesson has been learned the hard way by many a prospector," he laughs.

For NASA the stakes are higher than profit. The lives of astronauts
could hang in the balance. "Proven reserves on the Moon can perhaps be
thought of as having enough confidence to risk the lives of astronauts
to go after it."

What does it take to "prove" a reserve?that is, to know with
confidence
that a resource exists in high enough concentration to be produced?

"That depends on the nature of the deposit," explains Beaty. "Searching
for oil on Earth, you can drill one hole, measure the pressure and
calculate how much oil is there. You know that oil probably exists 100
feet away because liquids flow. However, for gold you must drill holes
100 feet apart, and assay the concentration of gold every five feet
down
each hole. That's because the solid earth is heterogenous. 100 feet
away
the rocks may be completely different."

Deposits on the Moon aren't so well understood. Is lunar ice widespread
or patchy, deep or shallow? Does it even exist? "We don't know," says
Beaty. "We still have a lot to learn."

Postulate #2: "You cannot define a reserve without specifying how it
can
be extracted. If it can't be mined, it's of no use." Enough said.

Postulate #3: "Perfect knowledge is not
possible. Exploration costs money, and we can't afford to buy all the
information we want. We have to make choices, deciding what information
is critical and what's not."

He offers the following hypothetical example:

"Suppose we decide to send a robot with a little drill and an onboard
laboratory into Shackleton Crater, a place on the Moon with suspected
ice deposits. We're going to have to think pretty carefully about that
lab. Maybe it can contain only two instruments. What are the two things
we most need to know?"

"Suppose further that someone on Earth has invented a machine that can
extract water from lunar soil. But it only works if the ice is close to
the surface and if the ice is not too salty." The choice is made. "We'd
better equip the robot with instruments to measure the saltiness of the
ice and its depth in the drill hole."

Finally, Postulate #4: "Don't underestimate the potential effects of
heterogeneity. All parts of the Moon are not alike, just as all parts
of
Earth are not alike. So where you land matters."

Ultimately, says Beaty, if geologists and engineers work together
applying these rules as they go, living off the land on alien worlds
might not be so hard after all.

Status on the hunchbacks' trip through a white hole:

The hunchbacks decided to get drunk. They left Earth,
and are heading toward the center of the galaxy and
threw a big party.

One of them broke out and began screaming like Hulk's
father. The Notredamers were calming him. Then he said:
I am the hunchback of notredam! And like Tarzan he swang
on a rope. He scream like Tarzan. People were worried.

Drunk, Tarzan drank Vodka with lemon. He had a vodkabottle
in one hand, a lime in his mouth, and with the other hand he
held on the rope and swang. He drank into his bottle, bit into the
lime, and spat lime seeds at people from above as he swang.

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http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/22may_beaty.htm

Hard-nosed Advice to Lunar Prospectors
NASA Science News
May 22, 2006

May 22, 2006: Long before David Beaty became associate Chief Scientist
for NASA's Mars Program, he was a prospector. Beaty spent 10 years
surveying remote parts of Earth for precious metals and another 12
years
hunting for oil.

And this qualifies him to work for NASA? Precisely.

Beaty has the kind of experience NASA needs as the agency prepares to
implement the Vision for Space Exploration. "Mining and prospecting are
going to be key skills for settlers on the Moon and Mars," he explains.
"We can send them air and water and fuel from Earth, but eventually,
they'll have to learn to live off the land, using local resources to
meet their needs."

On the Moon, for instance, mission planners hope to find water frozen
in
the dark recesses of polar craters. Water can be split into hydrogen
for
rocket fuel and oxygen for breathing. Water is also good for drinking
and as a bonus it is one of the best known radiation shields. "In many
ways," notes Beaty, "water is key to a sustained human presence." Ice
mining on the Moon could become a big industry.

Beaty has learned a lot from his long career prospecting, exploring and
mining on Earth. Now, with an eye on other worlds, he has distilled
four
pieces of wisdom he calls "Dave's Postulates" for prospectors working
anywhere in the solar system:

Postulate #1: "Wishful thinking is no substitute for scientific
evidence."

"On Earth, banks won't lend money for less than proven reserves. From a
bank's viewpoint, anything less than proven is not really there. This
lesson has been learned the hard way by many a prospector," he laughs.

For NASA the stakes are higher than profit. The lives of astronauts
could hang in the balance. "Proven reserves on the Moon can perhaps be
thought of as having enough confidence to risk the lives of astronauts
to go after it."

What does it take to "prove" a reserve?that is, to know with
confidence
that a resource exists in high enough concentration to be produced?

"That depends on the nature of the deposit," explains Beaty. "Searching
for oil on Earth, you can drill one hole, measure the pressure and
calculate how much oil is there. You know that oil probably exists 100
feet away because liquids flow. However, for gold you must drill holes
100 feet apart, and assay the concentration of gold every five feet
down
each hole. That's because the solid earth is heterogenous. 100 feet
away
the rocks may be completely different."

Deposits on the Moon aren't so well understood. Is lunar ice widespread
or patchy, deep or shallow? Does it even exist? "We don't know," says
Beaty. "We still have a lot to learn."

Postulate #2: "You cannot define a reserve without specifying how it
can
be extracted. If it can't be mined, it's of no use." Enough said.

Postulate #3: "Perfect knowledge is not
possible. Exploration costs money, and we can't afford to buy all the
information we want. We have to make choices, deciding what information
is critical and what's not."

He offers the following hypothetical example:

"Suppose we decide to send a robot with a little drill and an onboard
laboratory into Shackleton Crater, a place on the Moon with suspected
ice deposits. We're going to have to think pretty carefully about that
lab. Maybe it can contain only two instruments. What are the two things
we most need to know?"

"Suppose further that someone on Earth has invented a machine that can
extract water from lunar soil. But it only works if the ice is close to
the surface and if the ice is not too salty." The choice is made. "We'd
better equip the robot with instruments to measure the saltiness of the
ice and its depth in the drill hole."

Finally, Postulate #4: "Don't underestimate the potential effects of
heterogeneity. All parts of the Moon are not alike, just as all parts
of
Earth are not alike. So where you land matters."

Ultimately, says Beaty, if geologists and engineers work together
applying these rules as they go, living off the land on alien worlds
might not be so hard after all.

Amazing, that is what I would call thinking outside the NASA box. Hope he
brings a fresh prospective to the NASA team, and if they find any precious
metals, will he claim them for himself?

wrote in message
oups.com...
http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/22may_beaty.htm

Hard-nosed Advice to Lunar Prospectors
NASA Science News
May 22, 2006

May 22, 2006: Long before David Beaty became associate Chief Scientist
for NASA's Mars Program, he was a prospector. Beaty spent 10 years
surveying remote parts of Earth for precious metals and another 12
years
hunting for oil.

And this qualifies him to work for NASA? Precisely.

Beaty has the kind of experience NASA needs as the agency prepares to
implement the Vision for Space Exploration. "Mining and prospecting are
going to be key skills for settlers on the Moon and Mars," he explains.
"We can send them air and water and fuel from Earth, but eventually,
they'll have to learn to live off the land, using local resources to
meet their needs."

On the Moon, for instance, mission planners hope to find water frozen
in
the dark recesses of polar craters. Water can be split into hydrogen
for
rocket fuel and oxygen for breathing. Water is also good for drinking
and as a bonus it is one of the best known radiation shields. "In many
ways," notes Beaty, "water is key to a sustained human presence." Ice
mining on the Moon could become a big industry.

Beaty has learned a lot from his long career prospecting, exploring and
mining on Earth. Now, with an eye on other worlds, he has distilled
four
pieces of wisdom he calls "Dave's Postulates" for prospectors working
anywhere in the solar system:

Postulate #1: "Wishful thinking is no substitute for scientific
evidence."

"On Earth, banks won't lend money for less than proven reserves. From a
bank's viewpoint, anything less than proven is not really there. This
lesson has been learned the hard way by many a prospector," he laughs.

For NASA the stakes are higher than profit. The lives of astronauts
could hang in the balance. "Proven reserves on the Moon can perhaps be
thought of as having enough confidence to risk the lives of astronauts
to go after it."

What does it take to "prove" a reserve?that is, to know with
confidence
that a resource exists in high enough concentration to be produced?

"That depends on the nature of the deposit," explains Beaty. "Searching
for oil on Earth, you can drill one hole, measure the pressure and
calculate how much oil is there. You know that oil probably exists 100
feet away because liquids flow. However, for gold you must drill holes
100 feet apart, and assay the concentration of gold every five feet
down
each hole. That's because the solid earth is heterogenous. 100 feet
away
the rocks may be completely different."

Deposits on the Moon aren't so well understood. Is lunar ice widespread
or patchy, deep or shallow? Does it even exist? "We don't know," says
Beaty. "We still have a lot to learn."

Postulate #2: "You cannot define a reserve without specifying how it
can
be extracted. If it can't be mined, it's of no use." Enough said.

Postulate #3: "Perfect knowledge is not
possible. Exploration costs money, and we can't afford to buy all the
information we want. We have to make choices, deciding what information
is critical and what's not."

He offers the following hypothetical example:

"Suppose we decide to send a robot with a little drill and an onboard
laboratory into Shackleton Crater, a place on the Moon with suspected
ice deposits. We're going to have to think pretty carefully about that
lab. Maybe it can contain only two instruments. What are the two things
we most need to know?"

"Suppose further that someone on Earth has invented a machine that can
extract water from lunar soil. But it only works if the ice is close to
the surface and if the ice is not too salty." The choice is made. "We'd
better equip the robot with instruments to measure the saltiness of the
ice and its depth in the drill hole."

Finally, Postulate #4: "Don't underestimate the potential effects of
heterogeneity. All parts of the Moon are not alike, just as all parts
of
Earth are not alike. So where you land matters."

Ultimately, says Beaty, if geologists and engineers work together
applying these rules as they go, living off the land on alien worlds
might not be so hard after all.

Amazing, that is what I would call thinking outside the NASA box. Hope he
brings a fresh prospective to the NASA team, and if they find any precious
metals, will he claim them for himself?

To make it fun, gravity was set to half during the party.

The hunchbacks were laying around passed out. One
of them touched the gravity controller, but passed out,
and set it to 0.01G instead of 1G.

As the air conditioning was turned on in the party room,
the gentle wind lifted them into the air, and like tree leaves
they flew up and fell on the wall in the back of the room,
then back down to the ground, not from gravity but from
the wind of the fan and stayed there in the corner, sleeping.
Some 20 hunchbacks. One of them lifted from the floor by
the fan's air onto the top of the pyramid.

As Tarzan slept, he woke up. He was in a jungle.

He went to pee in a bush. All the hunchbacks appeared
drinking vodka bottles and chewing on limes. As he peed,
one of them spat a lemon seed at him. He finished peeing,
zipped his pants up. More seeds arrived at him. They were
all spitting at him, and he began running through the jungle.
They followed him. He ran and ran, tried to escape, and
out of nowhere a Tarzan cry. O~O~O~O~O~OOOOOH
The real Tarzan swang on a rope from a tree behind and
saved him. They were swinging from rope to rope. The
hunchback looked to the left, and saw spiderman swinging
along.

They arrived to Tarzan's hut. Tarzan left the hunchback there
with Jane, and with a Tarzan scream, Tarzan took off.

The hunchback looked toward Jane, and She was nice.

"I am Jane, why don't you come inside." - she said and
she reached out her hands.

"You are very very nice" - the hunchback replied and
walked toward her - "Very very nice." - he repeated, and
woke up.

He climbed out of the package of hunchbacks, and floated
with gentle hops toward the gravity control and reset it to
1G, and the hunchbacks cried up smashing each other.
He ran into the bathroom.

Day 36.

Captain: "We are arriving to Solar System.
There is a planet which may have life. According to
the readings there is an atmosphere there that can
sustain life, and the temperature is 30 degrees Celcius
at the equator."

The planet appeared on the screen. It was a blue
water planet.

The captain walked back from the deck to tell the
others that they are arriving to a planet and planning
to land.

The captain and the co-pilot walked back in the ship,
and there were 30 spaceship genitor ladies working,
cleaning up mess left behind from parties.

The two men arrived to a breakfast area, and the hunchbacks
were having fresh eggs. An alpine woman was in the kitchen,
serving the hunchbacks, who were lined up for breakfast
with plates.

"Good Morning gentlemen" - the pilot spoke up and continued:
"We are arriving to a solar system, and will be landing on planet,
a planet which can sustain life. We will begin landing in an hour
and may spend a day there."

Hunchback Tarzan walked in dressed in jungle outfit, and held a
Vodka bottle in his hand. He was drunk and mumbling:
"boys, don't go in my room, boys, don't go in my room."

"Very well then!" - the pilot concluded, and walked out with
the co-pilot.

Day 36.

Captain: "We are arriving to Solar System.
There is a planet which may have life. According to
the readings there is an atmosphere there that can
sustain life, and the temperature is 30 degrees Celcius
at the equator."

The planet appeared on the screen. It was a blue
water planet.

The captain walked back from the deck to tell the
others that they are arriving to a planet and planning
to land.

The captain and the co-pilot walked back in the ship,
and there were 30 spaceship genitor ladies working,
cleaning up mess left behind from parties.

The two men arrived to a breakfast area, and the hunchbacks
were having fresh eggs. An alpine woman was in the kitchen,
serving the hunchbacks, who were lined up for breakfast
with plates.

"Good Morning gentlemen" - the pilot spoke up and continued:
"We are arriving to a solar system, and will be landing on planet,
a planet which can sustain life. We will begin landing in an hour
and may spend a day there."

Hunchback Tarzan walked in dressed in jungle outfit, and held a
Vodka bottle in his hand. He was drunk and mumbling:
"boys, don't go in my room, boys, don't go in my room."

"Very well then!" - the pilot concluded, and walked out with
the co-pilot.

Tarzan: "Its the advice. Don't go in my room."

Tarzan got a tray, plate and got in line for breakfast.

"Don't go in his room until the cleaning ladies
finished cleaning up there!" - a hunchback announced.

"You asshole!" - Tarzan jumped at him and they began
pushing each other around.

"Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight" - the hunchbacks cheered.

"Gentlemen! Stop that right away!" - the austrian chef
lady shouted, and hurried to separate them. She grabbed
them by the ear, and sat them down at separate tables.

Austrian lady: "You two just stop it! Ok? Stay at your tables.

"Who's gonna arrest us?" - Tarzan asked.

"Bedwetter." - the other hunchback grumbled.

Tarzan grabbed a knife: "I am going to cook your hump."

"Watch it!" - the austrian lady said.

The two hunchbacks jumped at each other again,
and rolled under the table while the others cheered them.

In the deck the captain and the co-pilot heard the loud
noises from behind.

The spaceship appeared near them, connected with
their ship. A hunchback's face appeared smashed
on the window. Behind him Tarzan, and the waitress
arguing. The hunchback saw the other large ship.

A door opened, and the captain and co-pilot shook
hands with with two humans. People with nets walked
by and entered the ship with the hunchbacks. As the
men with nets walked to the breakfast area, they threw
nets, caught all the hunchbacks, and began dragging them
in the net toward the other ship running and rapidly
with a lot of strength. They were quickly taken to the
other ship, the door closed, and the two ships departed.

Tarzan appeared in the same ship holding onto a rope,
hiding on top of a, of ah, ahm, on top of ah, on top of ah,
something in the ship, he hid. He was up there, in a hiding
place. He swung up there. He saw the other ship head
toward the planet.

He crawled up there, above the, you know, peeking down
through a hole, and listening to the captain and the co-
pilot, watching them observing the diamonds.

More to come another day.