Shielding the Moon: How NASA Models Micrometeoroid Threats to Future Artemis Bases
Daniel A. Yahalomi and colleagues used NASA’s Meteoroid Engineering Model to predict how often micrometeoroids strike a lunar base. They found that an unshielded base would face up to 23,000 impacts yearly, but modern Whipple shields block 99.9997% of them. A shielded base might experience a penetrating impact only once every few decades, with the lunar south pole emerging as the safest site for long-term Artemis missions.
Exploring Venus: A New Era in Planetary Science
Venus, Earth's "sister planet," offers crucial insights into planetary evolution, climate change, and habitability. NASA's Venus Exploration Analysis Group outlines a bold strategy with missions like VERITAS, DAVINCI, and EnVision, aiming to unravel Venus's past and its divergence from Earth. Advances in technology and international collaboration are key to exploring its extreme environment, with long-term plans including sample-return missions and human exploration.