Margaret Boone Rappaport and Christopher Corbally discuss...

Margaret Boone Rappaport ( Anthropologist): Good morning. We first should say that this dialogue derives in part from a chapter on “Projections for Lunar Culture, Living, and Working: How Will We Be Different?” It is Chapter 20, the last chapter, in a recent book titled The Human Factor in the Settlement of the Moon. 1@ The activities we describe will come after “base phase” on the Moon, which will occur at the South Pole, and after the “wiring up” of the earliest transportation and communications lines. Therefore, it attempts to anticipate a lunar lifestyle after a number of habitations are built and after they form a small village.

Christopher Corbally ( Astronomer): Even in that early phase, life on the Moon will take more innovation than on Mars. Why? Well, Mars has one- third of Earth’s gravity, but the Earth’s Moon has only one- sixth! That will make a big difference, in everything from the human gait, to work and leisure. Remember the Apollo astronauts back in the 1970s? They skipped rather than walked or ran on the Moon!

Margaret: I remember! Now, fifty years later, we still don’t know what that lower gravity does to the human mind and body! We can guess some of it from the experience of crews on the International Space Station, but there is much we don’t understand about changes in human musculature and brain in gravity as low as the Moon’s. What we are almost certain of is that lunar inhabitants will need to exercise to keep their hearts strong.

Christopher: Indeed. Exercise will help to maintain health of body and mind, and to keep stress down. Some people may not be able to cope with the isolation they experience on the Moon. However, as we have discussed before, there will be communications during work and in recreation time. We don’t expect that a lunar crew will be as isolated as feared. They’ll be in communication all the time with someone on the Moon or on Earth. There’s a time delay between Earth and Moon, but not much.

Margaret: Agreed. The time delay between Earth and Mars will completely prevent normal conversation. People will have to send recordings between the Earth and Mars… But Mars has a dayand- night cycle that is very close to Earth’s

Christopher: -- It does! The diurnal cycle will seem more familiar on Mars. On the Moon, as you move away from the poles to more equatorial areas, each day and each night will be about 14 Earth days.

Margaret: That’s an enormous difference! Days and nights two weeks long! We’ve talked about this before… I think the lunar crew will simply adopt an Earthside daily schedule. The Moon is physically so much closer than Mars! Keeping in touch with people on the Earth will be relatively easy.

Christopher: Lunar inhabitants may well adopt Earth’s clock. Still, even in the dark two weeks, we’re going to get substantial Earthshine the Sun’s light reflected off the Earth. During the Moon’s bright two weeks, the light comes directly from the Sun.

Margaret: But things are different at the poles, aren’t they? Our first Artemis base camp will be at the Moon’s South Pole…

Christopher: For the initial settlements, day and night will be extraordinarily long. It will be dark for 173 Earth days at the lunar poles, and light for 173 days. They will have 18- day transition periods at the Moon’s poles. In fact, there has been talk of using the mountains near the poles for solar power. The idea is to set the solar panels high enough to get continuous light from the Sun.

Margaret: I’ve read about that, and in the chapter on power options on the Moon in the same book that has our chapter. 2@ There are designs for giant solar collectors in orbit around the Moon.

Christopher: You’re right, but that’s for future settlers, not the earliest ones.

Margaret: What about power for the early greenhouses on the Moon? You say there will be generators? They can’t haul fossil fuel up from Earth to the Moon to run generators!

Christopher: No, but they might use the Moon’s own “fossil fuel”. They could split the Moon’s water into hydrogen and oxygen, and those are two very handy rocket propellants. They would generate power. But remember, plants also need darkness. They have to rest.

Margaret: So rocket fuel to provide electricity for extra light in the lunar greenhouses? That sounds strange!

Christopher: Well, there is also the option of nuclear generators.

Margaret: You don’t hear much about nuclear generators.

Christopher: If you’re going to split water on the Moon into hydrogen and oxygen, it’s going to take some power. Other than solar, you have nuclear.

Margaret: Interesting. That may be controversial.

Christopher: Remember, we have to find out exactly how much water is on the Moon. Satellites and probes are looking for water. We are not sure about the water proposed to be in dark spaces on the Moon.

Margaret: I thought water on the Moon mainly came ultimately from meteorites. That’s one theory. The meteorites crash into the Moon, and the water migrates gradually to the poles.

Christopher: That’s the theory.

Margaret: Let’s get back to what makes lifestyle unique on the Moon. The diurnal cycle and gravity both do. Crew will probably become “deconditioned” fast if they don’t work their hearts and muscles in the Moon’s low gravity. But... we’re not yet sure how much human deconditioning will occur.

Christopher: Again, the theory is that humans will react at one- sixth gravity much like they do on the International Space Station. But, that may not be true, over time.

Margaret: I know they can reverse some of that physical and neurological deconditioning in rodents by having them run around a centrifugation apparatus on the ISS. The rodents are back to normal with a little artificial gravity!

“Remember, we have to find out exactly how much water is on the Moon. Satellites and probes are looking for water.”

Above: Liftoff! NASA’s Artemis I Mega Rocket Launches Orion to Moon. Credit: NASA/ Bill Ingalls

Christopher: The question remains: Will humans seriously decondition on the Moon?

Margaret: It’s a possibility. I have thought to myself that we are about to engage in this expedition to conquer space and settle on other worlds, without knowing exactly what it’s going to do humans! You don’t hear much about the absence of knowledge of what space and lower gravities will do to humans.

Christopher: They don’t know.

Margaret: They don’t know.

Christopher: Typical for exploration.

Margaret: That’s true. But here, let’s turn to the questions about daily life on the Moon. We began by saying we are envisioning a small village of domed habitations. Everyone lives in a dome. Everyone works somewhere – another dome, a greenhouse, a launch pad. How do they get from one dome to another? If they work with interplanetary rockets, how do they get to work at the launch pad?

Christopher: Walkways. Leapways!

Margaret: Covered leapways! If they don’t have weighted boots or slip- on magnetic soles, they’ll be skipping and leaping! … What about a light rail?

Christopher: Perfect. That would get you to the cafeteria, canteen–- whatever they call it. As for getting to work at a launch pad or landing site for interplanetary spaceships, they’ll probably either live nearby, sleep on site for tours of duty, or catch a bus- like rover to work. You’ve seen the rovers they use on Mars – these will just be bigger.

Margaret: An important aspect of human life anywhere is the need for both solitude and communal life. Humans need both. The sleeping quarters will probably be private space, but communal space? Will there be a central dome that includes a cafeteria, space for games and movies, even a bar?

Christopher: The functions inherent to a cafeteria will need to be communal to conserve time, energy, and to recycle and compost as much waste as they can.

Margaret: That’s right! There’s no organic material on the Moon, and there is probably little or none on Mars, too. We’ll need to conserve, or compost, as much organic material as possible.

Christopher: Mess hall activities will be centralized for efficiency and for environmental protection. Less waste – less trash. A cleaner Moon!

Margaret: So, there is a cluster of domes to form a moon village. Everyone works. Everyone lives in a dome. Light rail connects them, along with electronic communications. They move from dome to dome on walkways or leapways. They skip instead of walking or running. They eat in a communal mess hall, where the serving, eating, cleaning, recycling, and composting all occur. It doesn’t sound too bad to me! Something like living on a western military base in a foreign country.

Christopher: They get their stores of food from Earth, or from lunar greenhouses. They prepare their meals efficiently. As little as possible goes to waste, and ALL water is re- cycled.

Margaret: Well, what about a replicator?

Christopher: Maybe. The technology is improving.

Margaret: Maybe they’ll have chocolate bars from the replicator! Hershey’s chocolate!

Christopher: Well, Cadbury chocolate for the Brits, of course.

Margaret: As we’ve noted before, there mustn’t be any open flames, so cooking is done in a microwave or a convection oven. On the Moon, all open flames will be dangerous indoors, and besides, they use up the oxygen! Precious oxygen.

Christopher: They will perhaps have glowing logs from LEDs.

Margaret: And fake bear skin rugs… vegan bear skin rugs.

Christopher: A gym in one of the domes. Hiking in the mountains of the Moon. Jet packs to travel farther distances.

Margaret: That’s an important difference compared to Mars! They’ll have ultralight planes on Mars. In fact, they already have one: Ingenuity! It’s a very thin atmosphere on Mars, but enough to carry an ultralight aloft.

Christopher: The Moon has no atmosphere, so they’ll have to use jetpacks on their suits. There’s no air resistance, so they’ll zoom!

Margaret: I’ve thought of one common area they’ll need – a library, or an office, a place to work with one or two others. Group privacy.

Christopher: The domes will all be round. They’ll use the Moon’s own regolith to construct Add- Man domes. They’ll bring the mastic from Earth. It works like a printer, as you know. Layer by layer of regolith and mastic will be laid down over an inflatable dome from Earth.

Margaret: Indeed, Add- Man, or additive manufacturing. Layer by layer, they will “print” the domes. But these are the features of the landscape and cultural hardscape. What will a day be like for a lunar resident?

Christopher: Someone will get up, have something to eat in the mess hall, go to work, then eat dinner back at the mess hall, then enjoy rest or recreation. They’ll have fun with their friends.

Margaret: It’s going to be expensive to get a human to the moon and support him – or her -- there. I think people are going to work 12- hour days, maybe with blocks of time off. With all that work, they’ll need to communicate with family and friends on Earth. They’ll need private space.

Christopher: A person will have small sleeping quarters for privacy, a small desk, maybe a little larger for couples. A place for private communication.

Margaret: Isolation. People have worried about this, but I am not so sure they will be all that isolated. If you can call grandma on Earth at will how isolated will they be? Besides, people often group for meditation.

Christopher: I hope there’s a theologian at the table along with all the planning engineers!

Margaret: I think what we’re getting at is privacy for groups – not just individuals. People may want to meditate, pray, or do aerobic exercises together. Aerobics. There needs to be a space for groups.

Christopher: How big a group?

Margaret: Who knows? The number will grow with time. At first people will probably group by occupation. They do that on Earth. Engineers with engineers. Techies to refuel rockets, with other techies. Groups and layers of people. It’s the way people form communities. They come together.

Christopher: I think that the early Artemis group at the South Pole is going to be like crew on ISS, or like a group at the South Pole of Earth. One captain, period. One head. And early on, they’ll still be taking directions from Earth. They won’t be completely independent. They can’t be. They need supplies and directions-- from Earth.

Margaret: I think the initial lingua franca will be English, don’t you?

Christopher: Yes, it’s already the language of air transportation and communication. But tell me, you’re an anthropologist, when does it change from “crew” to “community”? When does a lunar culture begin?

Margaret: The roots are in the people first there. They will create the first birthday rituals, the first observances of Christmas, the first gift- giving and festival occasions. They will make it up as they go.

Christopher: Remember, we wrote in our chapter about the first meal on the Moon at the Sea of Tranquility, long ago: bacon squares, peaches, sugar cookie cubes, pineapple grapefruit drink and coffee. 1@ Not bad!

Margaret: Perhaps they will immortalize that meal, or versions of it, in a Moon- wide lunar festival.

Christopher: We were asked about sustainability. We mentioned conserving waste and compost in meal preparation. What about the conservation of larger resources, management of waste, and recycling.

Margaret: This is going to take a great deal of learning. Conservation principles will have to be taught again and again to each new crew member on the Moon, until it’s integrated fully into their culture. I think that more than anything, we need crew who can learn, we need flexible learners and people who can care about the lunar environment. Managing construction mess is going to be important.

Christopher: Well, that introduces a whole new topic – robots! They will play an important part in helping to keep the Moon clean! We simply don’t know now how much of a role.

Margaret: I guess we’ll find out!

Christopher: We will find out, that’s for sure.