TheLianeonProject t1_ixd0p98 wrote on November 22, 2022 at 3:01 PM

>The successful launch of Artemis I is "opening the door for expanding the lunar economy," says Takeshi Hakamada, CEO of ispace, which is planning to launch its first private mission to the Moon on Nov. 28.

At roughly $4 Billion a pop marginal cost, Artemis I's launch doesn't mean jack from a "lunar economy" perspective. I question anyone's credentials who would make such a claim. If we wanted to send things to the Moon, there already were far cheaper options available.

That said, there is hope for SpaceX Starship, Blue Origin's New Glenn, and China's ChangZheng-9.

These are superheavy-lift launch vehicles that have sufficient payload capacity to the Moon, but also are cheap enough (and at least partially reusable) to make a "Lunar economy" possible.

Time will tell.

kaminaowner2 t1_ixg641l wrote on November 23, 2022 at 4:49 AM

The moon is believed to be full of hydrogen, and we have the ability to mine that from the soil with simple automated machines. We probably won’t have people permanently on the moon but I’d be surprised if trips to mars don’t start with a overnight trip to the moon.