Can high-tech cavemen live on the Moon?

if we have the ability to move out of the way of the big ones in
space, we also have the ability to change the course of them.
stations will be of two varieties. one is like the iss, small zero g,
with connective structures too weak to make it easy to move fast. the
other will be huge, strong ones that spin to create gravity, and that
would be too bulky to move easily. therefore if the asteroids are too
big to be stopped by the asteroid shields, they would have to have
their course altered to miss. it would be neccissary to keep a
constant watch out and to figure out all of their courses long before
they became a risk so that they could be moved in time. this means
that they could be adjusted to miss the moon or to hit far enough
away as to do no damage.

also it would be a lot more expensive to move ores and metals from
earth than to mind space material, not to mention a lot more
economical to use the waste material from that material for
shielding. the ones that would not be able to compete would be the
earth based miners.

--- In spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com, cygonaut
>
> I would, I do, advise against living on the moon. It's
comparatively far
> more hazardous than space and, because of it's gravity, less
> energy-efficient making most everything more costly to produce and
> manufacture.
>
> The big ones destroy everything for miles, above and below the
ground.
> You're more likely to be safer hovering high above the surface.
You can't
> avoid the big rocks, but you could, more likely, avoid them in
space with
> some mobility and, of course, in space, you're not attracting
anything
> substantial that could hit you.
>
> But I expect it'll happen whatever anyone says about it and any moon
> residents are likely to be customers of space-based manufacturers
and
> service providers.
>
> Moon development will likely end up like Nevada -- tourism,
military bases,
> gambling, prostitution, and speedy marriages. Any mining and
agrigultural
> groups would go out of business because of space
competition/prices. Most
> everything would have to be imported from earth and space.
>
> George
> cygo.com
>
> On 8/2/06, Alex Michael Bonnici wrote:
> >
> > http://www.newscientistspace.com/article/dn9644-can-hightech-
cavemen-live-on-the-moon.html
> > Can high-tech cavemen live on the Moon?
> > a.. 13:01 31 July 2006
> > b.. NewScientist.com news service
> > c.. David Shiga
> >
> > Moon caves would make good homes for astronauts and should
therefore be
> > mapped out, a space scientist argues.
> >
> > The Moon appears to possess long, cave-like structures called
lava tubes
> > that are similar to ones on Earth. They form when the surface of
a stream of
> > lava solidifies and the molten rock inside drains away, leaving a
hollow
> > tube of rock.
> >
> > Some of the tubes on Earth are big enough to drive a car through,
and
> > those on the Moon could be even larger. Apollo 15 astronauts
discovered that
> > Hadley Rille - a lunar channel that may be a partially collapsed
lava tube -
> > was 1 kilometre wide.
> >
> > For decades, engineers and space scientists have discussed the
possibility
> > of using these caves as astronaut housing because they are
sheltered from
> > space radiation and micrometeorite impacts. But the idea should
now be
> > revisited in light of NASA's push to send astronauts back to the
Moon, says
> > Austin Mardon of the Antarctic Institute of Canada in Edmonton,
Alberta.
> >
> > Meteorite-proof
> > At a meeting of the International Lunar Exploration Working Group
(ILEWG)
> > in Beijing, China, last week, he argued that robotic probes
should be sent
> > to potential lava tubes to see if they are suitable for
habitation.
> >
> > He says erecting pressurised tents inside a cave would be easier
and
> > faster than trying to construct a rigid structure on the
surface. "Instead
> > of assembling structures that have to be meteorite-proof on the
surface, or
> > burying them, you'd have tent-like structures inside these
tubes," Mardon
> > told New Scientist. "It's like being cavemen on the Moon."
> >
> > "It's a potentially very inviting place to put infrastructure,"
agrees
> > Mark Robinson of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois,
US. He says
> > sections of the lava tubes with roofs still intact appear to be
very stable,
> > having survived for 3 billion years or more since their formation.
> >
> > But he points out that the lava tubes may not be located where
NASA would
> > like to send astronauts. For example, the polar regions - which
may harbour
> > water ice that could be used to support a lunar base - appear to
bear no
> > sign of the ancient lava flows associated with lava tubes.
> >
> > Rocks in the road
> > And the tubes could be full of rubble, he adds. Haym Benaroya of
Rutgers
> > University in Piscataway, New Jersey, US, agrees and says it
might take a
> > lot of work to make the lava tubes usable. "Maybe the opening is
not big
> > enough. Maybe there are boulders in the way," he told New
Scientist.
> >
> > "Lava tubes are not ruled out, but the question is: at what stage
of lunar
> > development would they be feasible?" he says. Benaroya thinks the
first
> > lunar base is likely to be a more traditional metal-walled
structure built
> > on the surface.
> >
> > NASA has no plans for a dedicated robotic mission to search for
lava
> > tubes, but NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter should shed some
light on the
> > matter when it launches in 2008. Although not specifically
designed to
> > search for lava tubes, the images it sends back "will help find
good