NASA backs Blue Origin project to make solar cells on the moon

by Alan Boyle on July 25, 2023 at 10:53 amJuly 25, 2023 at 11:15 am

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin space venture has won $34.7 million in funding from NASA to support the development of a system that could produce solar cells on the moon from materials that are available on site.

The Blue Alchemist project is one of 11 proposals winning support from the space agency’s Tipping Point program, which partners with commercial ventures to back technologies that could contribute to long-term space exploration.

“Harnessing the vast resources in space to benefit Earth is part of our mission, and we’re inspired and humbled to receive this investment from NASA to advance our innovation,” Pat Remias, vice president for Blue Origin’s Capabilities Directorate, Space Systems Development, said today in a news release. “First we return humans to the moon, then we start to ‘live off the land.’”

Blue Alchemist would use lunar regolith — the dust and crushed rock that covers the moon’s surface — as the raw material for solar cells and electrical transmission wire. Oxygen, iron, silicon and aluminum would be extracted through a process known as molten regolith electrolysis, and fed into the manufacturing process. The oxygen could be used for life support or for rocket propulsion.

Kent, Wash.-based Blue Origin has been working on the technology over the past couple of years, with Earth-produced simulants taking the place of lunar regolith.

Blue Origin is also on the team for another Tipping Point project, led by Washington, D.C.-based Zeno Power Systems. Zeno was awarded $15 million for Project Harmonia, which aims to create a new type of radioisotope power supply for the Artemis moon program that uses americium-241 as fuel.

Other partners on Project Harmonia include Intuitive Machines, NASA Glenn Research Center, NASA Marshall Flight Center, Sunpower and the University of Dayton Research Institute. Zeno plans to have its technology ready for a lunar surface demonstration in 2027. Theoretically, the team’s Stirling generators could provide continuous power to lunar bases for years, using radioactive material that’s currently classified as nuclear waste.

“Project Harmonia will provide the technology to transform the moon from a location darkened by night and shadow to one enlightened by science and exploration, ultimately for the good of the nation and humankind,” Tyler Bernstein, CEO and co-founder of Zeno Power, said in a news release.

This is NASA’s sixth round of Tipping Point grants. Each company receiving a grant is expected to cover a minimum percentage of the total project cost — at least 10% to 25%, based on company size. NASA’s investment in this newest round is expected to amount to $150 million over the course of a period lasting up to four years.

“Partnering with the commercial space industry lets us at NASA harness the strength of American innovation and ingenuity,” NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a news release. “The technologies that NASA is investing in today have the potential to be the foundation of future exploration.”

In addition to Blue Origin and Zeno Power, the newly announced Tipping Point awardees include:

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