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The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is now seeking the public’s help through its partnership with HeroX to create a device that houses ‘dark energy’ for use in future lunar missions, solving the problem of long lunar nights. Future NASA lunar missions will stay longer and explore further into the satellite’s depths, so new sources of energy are being sought.
NASA is now planning and preparing for its future on the natural satellite of cosmic space, exploring new energy sources that can power future lunar missions. The NASA venture led the agency to partner with HeroX, a crowdsourcing platform for exploration and space affairs, to seek out those with new ideas for the extreme and uncontrolled situation.
(Photo: NASA via YouTube screenshot)
According to PR News Wire, this NASA venture would be for the progression and planned expedition for the Artemis program that aims to bring the first woman to the lunar surface. While solar energy is abundant on the lunar surface, nights on the moon can last up to 350 hours or 12-14 days, which is a long time without an energy source.
NASA’s Artemis program is the company’s intended benefactor. However, this does not necessarily mean that the ‘Watts on the Moon’ program should be completed by 2024. NASA previously announced that the target year for humanity’s return to the Moon would be 2024.
A huge series of prices awaits the winner with up to $ 5 million for the top contender. Not only that, the winners who reach the third phase would go on to the last and final stage, which is the production of the device with NASA and its team of innovators.
‘Watts on the Moon’-NASA and HeroX Venture
(Photo: NASA via YouTube screenshot)
(Photo: NASA via YouTube screenshot)
With NASA calling for help and HeroX creating a way for potential future innovators to shine, the project called ‘Watts on the Moon’ invites anyone, even individuals, to participate in the future of lunar missions. This request from NASA from the public is an indication that the agency plans to stay longer on the lunar surface to study and research.
‘Watts on the Moon’, however, does not require the public to have an immediate deadline for innovation, and does not expect it for 2024. NASA needs “unprecedented capacity for the distribution, management and storage of electrical and thermal energy “to maintain a prolonged lunar mission.
The project will provide NASA with its needs and fill its technology gaps. The agency lacks power on the lunar surface. The extreme ‘lunar nights’ will transcend a series of problems such as power and supplies, which NASA intends to solve with the crowdsourcing company.
Three-phase challenges for innovators
Individuals, groups or companies can choose to join the challenge with three stages of progression with additional prize money. NASA’s panel of judges will select up to three winners for Phase 1 alone, awarding over $ 100,000, and four finalists will receive $ 50,000 each.
Phase 2 will ask the chosen ones to create and develop prototypes that award winners up to $ 4.5 million. Phase 3 is the stage where one or more victors chosen from the past stages will work with the space agency to create the prototypes together with their group of scientists and engineers.
READ ALSO: NASA to launch a $ 23 million ‘space bath’ to the International Space Station on September 29
This article is owned by Tech Times
Written by Isaiah Alonzo
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