Deployable Surface Cover for Lunar Surface Operations During Launch and Landing

Our proposed effort focuses on a solution for dust plume blast mitigation during landing that can be deployed in the near term temporarily for early lunar missions. Specifically, we leverage a fabric-based ultralight matting system being developed by Astroport and its team of subcontract partners for U.S. military expeditionary landing surfaces in terrestrial Point-to-Point rocket cargo remote environments landings. For this NASA Phase 1 STTR, we research modifications needed for applying our novel thermal shielding coating technique to a textile substrate material to increase thermal tolerance and strength for the lunar environment. We then assess packaging and installation options for autonomous robotic deployment on the lunar surface. The project will conclude in Phase 2 with ground tests of a prototype matting system to demonstrate key operational characteristics in a simulated lunar environment. Although the fabric can be employed in a variety of applications for mitigating lunar surface dust control and containment, our research will focus on viability of two specific use cases relevant to NASA investments in our concept of operations (ConOps) for LLP infrastructure construction: (1) rocket plume blast mitigation during the return launch of a lunar lander from the unimproved surface at the initial landing spot where excavation and construction machinery were delivered and offloaded; and (2) use as a covering to stabilize and mitigate surface ablation of our LLP brick material pavement