A REVIEW OF CONCEPTUAL DESIGNS OF ROBOTIC SPACE SYSTEMS FOR MINING OF HELIUM-3 NUCLEAR FUEL ON THE MOON

A REVIEW OF CONCEPTUAL DESIGNS OF ROBOTIC SPACE SYSTEMS FOR MINING OF HELIUM-3 NUCLEAR FUEL ON THE MOON

V.V. Sinyavsky
Doctor of Technical Science, S.P. Korolev Rocket and Space Corporation «ENERGIA», Profes-sor, Science Advisor, 4A, Lenin Street, Korolev, Moscow area, 141070, Russia, tel.: +7(495)513-79-10, Viktor.Sinyavsky@rsce.ru
Doctor of Technical Science, Bauman Moscow State Technical University (BMSTU), Professor, 5-1, 2-ya Baumanskaya ul., Moscow, 105005, Russia, Viktor.Sinyavsky@rsce.ru

Received 17 April 2018

Abstract
The paper discusses the advantages of using helium-3 as an environmentally friendly nuclear fuel. Since the Earth is lacking reserves of helium-3 that would be economically sound to develop, the paper discusses the feasibility of its mining from the lunar regolith. The paper discusses the process and a lunar mining system based on solar power with the use of thermal and electric power from a nuclear heat and power plant with a thermionic converter reactor.

Key words
Helium-3, a thermonuclear fuel, lunar mining system, integrated processing of lunar regolith, lunar nuclear heat and power plant.

Bibliographic description
Sinyavsky, V. (2018). A review of conceptual designs of robotic space systems for mining of helium-3 nuclear fuel on the Moon. Robotics and Technical Cybernetics, 2(19), pp.5-15.

UDC identifier:
629.788:622(15)

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