MSNBC published a neat article outlining what is being done to design habitats for the moon colony. NASA's Constellation Program Office seems to be coordinating the effort.

The main thrust of the lunar habitat projects are inflatable dwellings. The reason for this is that the planned payload of the Orion ships are only 13,000 pounds. Space Station modules, which are apparently the only other option for lunar habitats, weigh up to 30,000 pounds.

Beyond talks with Lockheed and Boeing, NASA is talking with several other private contractors to help design and possibly build these inflatable habitats. One company is Bigelow Aerospace, who has already launched one of their inflatable habitat designs into orbit, and has a second test launch planned for April, 2007. The second company is ILC Dover. They have built a prototype for a NASA funded test in Antarctica.

One major problem facing lunar habitats is solar radiation. Plans for dealing with this radiation are covering the inflatable habitat with dirt, tanks of water, or extra layers of re-enforced polyethylene.

NASA is also talking with several companies about techniques for mining the surface of the moon. Caterpillar is consulting on the properties of dirt and heavy equipment. Norcat and Electric Vehicle Controllers, from Canada, are working to develop special types of drills for lunar mining. Lunar mining will be important to the mission for several reasons. One is livability. Oxygen and water are expected to be extracted from the moon's surface. The lunar surface is composed of oxygen rich minerals. According to the article by processing 2 inches of soil collected from an area half the size of a basketball court could sustain 4 astronauts for 75 days. Water is expected to be found in frozen patches just under the surface of the moon. Also, mining will be important for helium-3 extraction. Helium-3 is a compound that can be readily used for fusion reactors.

Mining companies have also suggested using the lunar soil as a building material. By adding some microwave radiation to the soil, it will apparently fuse together creating a hard surface. The technique is being promoted as a way to create roads and platforms on the surface.

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