INTERNATIONAL MASTER SEEDS: THE DESIGN OF A MOON COMMUNICATION AND NAVIGATION SYSTEM, AS PART OF THE PROJECT WORK ACTIVITY 2006-2007

摘要

In the frame of future space exploration activities, the establishment of a permanent lunar base is the first step toward the colonization of Solar system. This study has been conducted during the International Post Graduate Master Course in SpacE Exploration and Development Systems (SEEDS), as a part of an extensive Project Work Activity (PWA) conducted by a European team of 11 students. The topic was to study the feasibility of a Permanent Human mOon Exploration BasE (PHOEBE), settled at the South Pole of the Moon, with the aim of improving human exploration and In Situ Resource Utilization. The paper is focused on MO.NA.CO., the Moon Navigation and Communication System for PHOEBE. MO.NA.CO. shall provide the communication between PHOEBE and the Earth Ground Segment, moreover it shall provide a navigation system for the mobile elements of the base. The study explains how the communication system was designed, starting from the requirements, explaining the different channels and frequencies, the complete architecture, the analysis of the different possible links and the tradeoffs necessary to achieve the final architecture. Navigation concept is finally addressed, focusing on the infrastructure required to provide positioning capabilities to the rovers performing exploration at long distances from the base.