NEEP602 Exam Questions

NEEP602 Course Notes (Fall 1996)
Resources from Space

Second Exam
Resources From Space
NEEP 602/Geology 376
April 16, 1996

Choose 5 out of the 8 questions
All questions are weighted equally
Do questions 1, and/or 2 on the blank sheet of paper provided
Do questions, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and/or 8 in the blue exam book
PUT YOUR NAME ON BOTH the PAPER and the BOOK!

1) Discuss how to provide solar particle event protection to a two person lunar expedition traveling with an Apollo-type lunar rover. Assume 30 minutes notice before arrival of the intense particle flux.

2) During orbital reconnaissance of potential landing sites for the first two Martian landings (assuming that your ultimate goal several landings later is a self-sustaining Mars base as well as safety) what information would you like to gather and in what priority?

3) Assume that you have a chemical rocket with an exhaust velocity of 4,500 m/s and have escaped Earth's sphere of influence. Calculate: a) The payload fraction (empty mass/initial mass) for a minimum-energy (Hohmann) trajectory from Earth's orbit around the Sun (1.5 x 10¹¹ m away) to the asteroid belt (~ 4.5 x 10¹¹ m) if the required Delta-v is 11,750 m/s.; b) The time it takes to travel from Earth's orbit to the asteroid belt on this trajectory.

4) List three key advantages or disadvantages for each fuel type listed below. (Do not list the opposite of an advantage or disadvantage for one fuel as a key issue of its competing fuel)

a) Liquid fuel in a chemical rocket

b) Solid fuel in a chemical rocket

c) D-T fuel in a fusion rocket

d) D³He fuel in a fusion rocket

5) Describe how mining on the Moon and on an Asteroid would be different than mining on Earth. In particular, how would:

a,) Blasting

b) Hauling (to the processing location)

c) Transporting (to the market)

differ from Earth-based operations? Please identify 1 or more areas of difference. Do not get hung up on energy sources in this question.

6) The current methods of extracting ³He from lunar regolith concentrate on small grain size material (<100 microns) heated to 700 °C.: a) What was the reason that the temperature was limited to 700 °C?
b) Why is it more efficient to discard the large grains?
7) Describe the hydrogen reduction of ilmenite process used to extract oxygen from regolith. Include chemical reactions when necessary.
8): a) What are the advantages of using 1) D³He, and 2) ³He³He fuel cycles in fusion power plants?
b) What are the disadvantages?

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