Atlas of Lunar Historical Sites and Proposed Bases and Infrastructure

Abstract

The 21st century has witnessed an expansion of space operations throughout the Earth–Moon system and the wider Solar System with the introduction of new space-faring countries, decreasing costs of space access, and advances in space system technologies. Many countries are endeavoring to move outside geosynchronous orbit to pursue missions in cislunar space and lunar orbit, as well as on the lunar surface, with invigorated U.S., Chinese, and Russian lunar mission initiatives being principle examples. Coalescing international efforts to return to the Moon may result in not only the pursuance of short-duration crewed lunar missions, but also the attainment of the first extraterrestrial human settlement(s) and the establishment of a permanent lunar base. Site selection for short-duration soft landings and the construction of basing/infrastructure will become a critical function to enhance mission assurance and operational safety. In this paper, an atlas of human activity on the lunar surface is presented featuring a concise mapping of locations associated with historical lunar impactor and soft-landing sites and proposed future basing and infrastructure reports. The atlas seeks to enable a holistic depiction of lunar surface activity to gain insight into where future lunar bases may be located and establish historical patterns of proposed basing.