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Off planet: caving expeditions to Moon & Mars, humans v robots

cap n chris

cap n chris

Well-known member
In May there's the 4th Interplanetary Cave Exploration Conference being hosted in the Canaries and I wonder whether any BCRA cavey types are attending. I'll be on the island for the duration but at Eur400 a ticket I don't think I'll be attending in person but will definitely be keen to read the proceedings if there are any.

Poolinky for anyone trested: https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/4thcaves2023/
 
Thanks for flagging that up. It does look interesting and it's a good place to hold it, given all the lava tunnels there.
Maybe there's something to be said for British cavers to have a toe in the water; I wonder if at least partial funding for a BCA representative could be found? (Not me I hasten to add; got too much to do in the Dales.)
 
Pitlamp said:
Thanks for flagging that up. It does look interesting and it's a good place to hold it, given all the lava tunnels there.
Maybe there's something to be said for British cavers to have a toe in the water; I wonder if at least partial funding for a BCA representative could be found? (Not me I hasten to add; got too much to do in the Dales.)
Click to expand...
My hunch is that it's a very very very tempting "jolly" for University types to get a paid holiday somewhere rather pleasant while operating under the guise of research. If the organisation that pays your salary is also paying for a sunshine trip and entrance fee then it's quite a draw.
 
An anonymous contact got footage back in January of a Mars robot being field tested in Lanzarote (I was there, but I wasn't there ;-) ), footage here for anyone interested (I'll probably get in trouble for posting it but that's my default):
 
Pitlamp said:
Thanks for flagging that up. It does look interesting and it's a good place to hold it, given all the lava tunnels there.
Maybe there's something to be said for British cavers to have a toe in the water; I wonder if at least partial funding for a BCA representative could be found? (Not me I hasten to add; got too much to do in the Dales.)
Click to expand...
For anyone unfamiliar with the world class lava caves in the Canaries, Lanzarote and Tenerife in particular, here's some of Pete Hann's excellent photos from a visit to Lanarote a decade ago! (Blimey time flies!):
 
Mentions Lanzarote
phys.org

Robots team up to explore planetary lava caves

In the not-too-distant future, the search for signs of life on Mars and the moon could see the next generation of robots exploring a new frontier: subsurface lava tubes. These missions could also help us determine the best locations for establishing human bases.
phys.org phys.org
 
In April 2024 we went to Ogarrio, a small village very near Matienzo, for a caving holiday. On our first day Helen suggested that we visit Cueva del Escalón, a cave near Coventosa, as it was a nice, easy walking trip with good formations that would provide a suitable introduction to caving in the area. So we went to the parking spot and set off up the track . . . but when we reached the cave it was only to find that it had been blocked off with a wall containing a door across the entrance, surrounded by a high fence topped with barbed wire. Tom consulted the internet on his cell-phone and discovered that it had been taken over by a group called Astroland to use as a training camp for would-be Mars explorers and was no longer accessible to cavers.
 

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NASA's Our Alien Earth: The Lava Tubes of Mauna Loa, Hawai'i​



Chapters:
  • Introduction to Mars analog
  • Exploring volcanic lava tubes
  • Microbe and mineral research
  • Raman spectroscopy testing
  • Distinguishing abiotic patterns
  • Sampling atmospheric gases
  • 3D mapping and UV technology
  • Life as an astrobiologist
  • Future implications for Mars
 
"the Stoer Formation, external around Clachtoll, in Assynt"

I wonder if they popped into the Achins Bookshop in Inverkirkaig, only a couple of miles away, I picked up a couple of Geology books there (was Hutton's Arse one of them?).

Not far too from the Moine Thrust at Knockan Crag.
 
Robots vs humans debate again, ALL theoretical, getting off this planet is the easy bit, landing on a different celestial body is an entirely different matter, let alone exploration.
 
wormster said:
Robots vs humans debate again, ALL theoretical, getting off this planet is the easy bit, landing on a different celestial body is an entirely different matter, let alone exploration.
Click to expand...
You are aware that Mars has been populated by robots which have been successfully exploring it for over a decade already. There's masses of reports online, including video, geology, photos etc. freely available.
 
cap n chris said:
You are aware that Mars has been populated by robots which have been successfully exploring it for over a decade already. There's masses of reports online, including video, geology, photos etc. freely available.
Click to expand...
Yes I am fully aware of what is going on with rovers on both celestial bodies.

(more aware than the average person given the job that I do)

But I stand by my original Statement:

Getting off this celestial body is relatively easy, traveling celestial distances and landing on another body is bloody difficult!!

When Man landed on the Moon back in the 1970's it took 1/3 of the U.S.A.'s G.D.P. to get there.

Technology has changed, the level of difficulty hasn't!!!
 

NASA has selected a Planetary Science Institute–led proposal to investigate whether a potentially large underground cave extends beyond the opening of a lunar pit. Such a cave may one day provide a safe haven for astronauts to escape the radiation and extreme temperature swings present at the lunar surface.

Led by PSI associate director and senior scientist Than Putzig, the selected project is the Geophysical Instruments for Marius Lunar pit Investigation, or GIMLI. PSI is partnering with Honeybee Robotics, which will build much of the equipment and instrumentation for the effort. The equipment and instrumentation will be carried on a lander and rover provided through the Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative. The PSI work will be carried out in partnership with the Norwegian Space Agency.
www.nasa.gov

NASA Adds New Science Investigations for Moon Base - NASA

NASA selected three new scientific investigations and their payload suites to advance our knowledge of the Moon and help pave the way for building humanity’s
www.nasa.gov www.nasa.gov
 
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