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The assembly of the Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway is slated to begin in 2022,NASA says,with the power and propulsion system being launched and placed in lunar orbit;to be followed by habitation,logistics and airlock capabilities,establishing the core functionalities of the new space station.
NASA will send one Orion crew a year to the LOP-G in its early years,requiring high levels of autonomy and /or teleoperations for its research projects.Robots could help maintain the station during both crewed and uncrewed periods.*
In a recent NASA workshop,scientists expressed their desires for research projects in cislunar space aboard the LOP-G.It yielded a basic understanding of the science that could be conducted from the cislunar vantage point,and the potential spacecraft resources required for it.More than 190 abstracts were received from scientists.Both scientists and engineers were invited to it to discuss future exploration on the LOP-G.
Being beyond Earth's magnetosphere on the LOP-G opens up a range of observational possibilities not otherwise available,in such fields as astrophysics,heliophysics and Earth science.As well,the deep space exposure to high energy radiation and space debris during solar system missions poses risks requiring study for understanding and mitigating the threats.
Inside,the scientists pointed out,the LOP-G could be fitted with instruments to evaluate radiation effects on electronics and other susceptible materials.Monitors could be activated during crew visits for evaluation of behavioural health;neurocognitive functions;and radiation and microgravity effects on crew.
Outside the LOP-G,materials research platforms that host interchangeable experiments with standardised attachments could be installed.In the course of Earth observations from the LOP-G,there are the opportunity to use Earth as a proxy for exoplanet detection,as well as regular views of polar regions.For heliophysics,solar activity characterisations are possible,and could improve our understanding of solar cycles and their effects on Earth,as well as possible risks to astronauts and spacecraft.Even at the Moon,it has to be remembered that the Apollo missions were of short duration,planned to avoid periods of intense solar activity,so any longer stay in cislunar space and beyond poses as yet unquantified risks.*
The LOP-G can be used to deploy increasingly capable CubeSats to conduct experiments.The LOP-G infrastructure can support nearby spacecraft servicing,wide aperature telescope assembly,and serve as a communications relay for large data returns to Earth from small probes or satellites in the lunar environment.
Robotically collected lunar samples could be investigated aboard the LOP-G,or preserved on it for their return to Earth;and astronauts on the LOP-G could remotely operate rovers on the surface to characterise lunar resources or venture to the unexplored lunar far side.*
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