Thursday, August 11, 2011

Solar wind + lunar oxygen = water

The moon is loaded with oxygen.  The sun, for its part unleases nearly 7 billion tons per hour of mass in the form of solar wind.

A few calculations:

The surface area of the sun:
2,009,600,000,000 square miles ( approx)
or 2 trillion square miles

Now, the solar wind is emitted at the rate of 7 billion tons per hour (approx), or 14 trillion pounds per hour.
Or 7 pounds per square mile per hour

The surface area of the moon ( approx.  for what it is worth) is 12,560,000 square miles

Thus a trap 1 square mile on the moon can trap upwards of 7 pounds of hydrogen per hour, assuming it is all hydrogen. Combine the oxygen obtained from the moon and the solar wind collected when it hits the trap you set on the lunar surface, and you can make water with it.

What do you think of that?

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