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Xkloid t1_j1buo5e wrote

I wonder if this could have an application on Mars, avoiding the dust storms, and they could get the solar unit in place before landing on the planet with a receiver unit ready to go for power to get right to work.

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creativename87639 t1_j1dsfr0 wrote

I would assume the ideal early settlement energy on a planet covered in dust would be some form of nuclear, that way you don’t have try to get RF waves through the atmosphere as well.

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CosmicBrownie152023 t1_j1f0gho wrote

Problem with that is that Mars is devoid of heavy radioactive elements like uranium-235 that would power the reactors.

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creativename87639 t1_j1f1sfz wrote

Luckily we have an abundance of those metals here on earth.

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CosmicBrownie152023 t1_j1f4nly wrote

That is true. If we had an efficient way to transport them, we could power outposts using materials from Earth. We could also get more through astroid mining. Personally I think trying to colonize Mars in the next 100 years would be a bad idea. We should start with an easier project like the moon.

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Cindexxx t1_j1fcye9 wrote

We are iirc. Makes it a great pit stop to go other places. Launching from earth directly sucks.

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creativename87639 t1_j1fdl2r wrote

Yes we are, it’s the main purpose of the Artemis mission, I think the manned rocket to the moon goes up in 2024-2025

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CosmicBrownie152023 t1_j1fecfs wrote

I had forgotten about that. At least we have some proper planning.

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creativename87639 t1_j1fehzm wrote

It’s a really cool mission, I’m sad I missed Artemis 1 earlier this year but I plan on going to the Kennedy space center for the next one, it’s going to be an amazing accomplishment to set up a permanent base on the moon.

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CosmicBrownie152023 t1_j1fg0n7 wrote

Unfortunately I'll probably miss this one too. That would be an incredible accomplishment though. Setting up a moon base would be an accomplishment on par with, if not great than, the I.S.S.

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Jobotics t1_j1g8rfy wrote

Start at the moon, mine it to build a large-ish space habitat that can grow food and perfect closed loop life support systems. Build a second one and park it in orbit around Mars. Then be able to land on Mars and return at will. Profit.

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Gk5321 t1_j1fb067 wrote

Who knows, maybe by the time we get there fusion will actually be working.

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danielravennest t1_j1e9m1d wrote

The difficulty is in focusing a beam tightly enough for a small setup on the ground. A combination of small nuclear units (around 30kWe + 90 kW thermal each) and solar panels with dust brushes should do for small bases. Various rovers have run for several years without panel cleaning.

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KochibaMasatoshi t1_j1ett8p wrote

Why dust brushes, like a windshield wiper is a thing none of the rovers or stationary landers have ever been equipped with?

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danielravennest t1_j1evx21 wrote

Solar farms on Earth actually use robots on tracks with soft brushes to clean the panels. They get used in dry and dusty areas. In areas with lots of water, they just get sprayed.

The Insight lander that just died is 1/10th the weight of a large modern communications satellite. Deep space missions have had incredibly tight weight margins. So anything optional tends to get left behind.

The SpaceX Starship is being designed to land 200-300 times bigger payloads on Mars than Insight, and 100-200 times heavier than Curiosity and Perseverance. So they could include optional stuff like cleaning devices. They will also have people, so a simple dust brush you use once a year to clean the solar panels may be all you need.

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KochibaMasatoshi t1_j1ewmh6 wrote

Thank you! I guess also they thought the lander/rover to be faulty even before the brush is actually needed. I mean they design these things for a few months only (ofc this is also politics, design it for 90 days, make sure it works 2 years and you get the funds for next year).

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pmMeAllofIt t1_j1g4qih wrote

It's a lot of added weight. The solar array is a thin film that gets fanned out. To add a whiper brush would add a lot of weight, and would need different design array that is rigid enough to be brushed.

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Jake0024 t1_j1f0wfw wrote

How do the satellites in orbit get energy to the surface, avoiding the dust storms in the atmosphere in the middle?

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quettil t1_j1ezx0a wrote

If it's too dusty for your solar panels, surely it's too dusty to beam power down?

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gerkletoss t1_j1fonz5 wrote

A reactor would likely be a better choice for Mars

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