Functional Comparison of Lunar Regoliths and Their Simulants
Open accessAbstract
Lunar regolith simulants are essential to the development of technology for human exploration of the Moon. Any equipment that will interact with the surface environment must be tested with simulant to mitigate various risks, such as unexpected mechanical abrasion, chemical interactions, or thermal failures. To reduce the greatest amount of risk, the simulant must replicate the lunar surface as well as possible. To quantify the similarities and differences between simulants, the figure of merit (FOM) was developed. The Figure of Merit software compares the simulants and regolith by particle size, particle shape, density, and the relative abundance of minerals, rocks, and glass; these four properties dictate the majority of the remaining characteristics of geologic material. As a result, not only is the risk made quantifiable, but a conceptual framework is established for the evaluation of simulants. There are important limitations in our knowledge and technology pertaining to simulants. Specific examples include a surprising lack of specific, important measurements on lunar samples, the unavoidable presence of nonlunar phases in the simulants, and the limited nature of the FOM.
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Most existing simulants were developed to address specific application fields, and their agricultural properties have rarely been evaluated.
“Most existing simulants were developed to address specific application fields, and although their chemical interactions or properties related to mechanical abrasion have been assessed to mitigate potential risks (Rickman et al., 2013), their agricultural properties have rarely been evaluated.”
From The Potential for Lunar and Martian Regolith Simulants to Sustain Plant Growth: A Multidisciplinary Overview (2022) · cites this paper as Rickman et al., 2013
The Abstract says simulants are tested to mitigate risks to lunar-surface equipment and compared by physical properties and bulk chemistry. It does not establish that most simulants were developed for specific applications or that chemical interactions and abrasion properties have been assessed. The statement about rarely evaluated agricultural properties follows the citation and is not clearly attributed to Rickman et al. (LLM, conf=0.72)
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Farries, K. W., Visintin, P., Smith, S. T., & van Eyk, P. (2021) · Construction and Building Materials · doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2021.123627 · Cited by 169 · see citing works
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Lim, S., Prabhu, V. L., Anand, M., & Taylor, L. A. (2017) · Advances in Space Research · doi:10.1016/j.asr.2017.06.038 · Cited by 134 · see citing works
Duri, L. G., Caporale, A. G., Rouphael, Y., Vingiani, S., Palladino, M., De Pascale, S., & Adamo, P. (2022) · Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences · doi:10.3389/fspas.2021.747821 · Cited by 107 · see citing works
A structural assessment of unrefined sintered lunar regolith simulant
Indyk, S. J., & Benaroya, H. (2017) · Acta Astronautica · doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2017.09.018 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
- Authors
- Rickman, D., Edmunson, J., & McLemore, C.
- Affiliations
- Geologist, Marshall Space Flight Center, National Space Science and Technology Center, 320 Sparkman Dr., ZP11, Huntsville, AL 35805 (corresponding author).
- Marshall Space Flight Center (US)
- ORCID
- Edmunson, Jennifer
- Venue
- Journal of Aerospace Engineering
- Published
- 2013-01
- Volume
- 26
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 176-182
- ISSN
- 0893-1321 (ISSN-L)
- 1943-5525
- OpenAlex
- W2156485528
- Cited by
- 22
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 2 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 1
- FWCI
- 0.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Locations
- Journal of Aerospace Engineering (publishedVersion)
- NASA STI Repository (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) (submittedVersion)
- NASA Technical Reports Server (NASA)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Planetary Science and Exploration
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Aerospace Engineering › Space Exploration and Technology
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Astro and Planetary Science
- Keywords
- lunar regolith simulant, lunar regolith, figure of merit, particle size, particle shape, density, glass content, lunar exploration, equipment testing
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