NASA Plans Moon Railway for Future Human Settlement
NASA is advancing its lunar exploration infrastructure with the development of a novel transportation system called Flexible Levitation on a Track (FLOAT). This innovative concept involves magnetically levitating robots that travel over a three-layer flexible film track laid directly on the moon's surface. The system is designed to transport payloads, potentially up to 100 tons daily, without the need for complex construction, aiming to provide a reliable and autonomous solution for moving materials around the lunar surface.
The FLOAT project, part of NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts program, envisions these unpowered magnetic robots to carry varied shapes and sizes of loads at a speed of about 1 mph (1.61 km/h). This levitation method is chosen to minimize friction and damage from lunar dust, a significant concern for machinery operating in the harsh environment of the moon.
The long-term goal of the FLOAT system is to support a sustainable lunar base, with the capacity to transport regolith and other materials to and from different lunar sites, including landing pads and outposts. The project, led by Dr. Ethan Schaler, a robotics engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, has recently received additional funding to continue its development, signaling NASA's commitment to pioneering technologies that could shape the future of space exploration and lunar resource utilization.
