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Completed TRL 3 (started at 2, targeting 3)
Understanding the origin and extent of the irregular distribution of near-surface lunar volatiles will require methods that enable consistent access into PSRs as well as distributed sensor networks that sample over many & varied locations. Our team has developed a low Size, Weight, Power, and Cost (SWaP-C), easily distributed, standalone sensor concept that can detect water ice in the near surface (10s of cm) of PSRs. In this IRAD we will demonstrate a breadboard sensor and use it to quantitatively measure water ice in an icy regolith simulant.
Orbital indicators from neutron, UV, and IR spectroscopy suggest lunar volatiles, including H2O, are heterogeneously distributed within permanently shadowed regions (PSRs). In stark contrast to Mercury, where polar volatile deposits seem to correlate well with maximum temperatures below the volatility temperature of H2O, the Moon shows low correlation between indications of surface volatiles and temperature. Understanding the volatile inventory of the polar regions broadly and the distribution in space and depth of water ice are critical goals of the lunar discovery exploration program and Artemis program.
The broader goal of this effort is to determine the present abundance of surface and near-surface water content within PSRs at low cost. This will enable the Agency’s Moon to Mars strategy by identifying the location and abundances of H2O at the moon, specifically by providing a turn-key volatiles measurement (primarily H2O) for locations that are difficult or undesirable to access (e.g. dangerous PSR, off the planned traverse path, etc).
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