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Meanwhile voyager is beyond the solar system. I don’t see why they didn’t use something that’s not solar so they aren’t just littering the moon

amenghra 1y ago
The moon is huge compared to a single thing we can currently send there. Comparatively, we are “littering” our own atmosphere a ton more during liftoff.
- atkailash 1y ago
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alwa 1y ago
I can’t help but suspect Starship’s recent run of spectacular explosions might frustrate efforts to launch more nuclear-powered craft like the Voyagers too soon…
- deleted 1y ago
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- atkailash 1y ago
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DarmokJalad1701 1y ago
> Meanwhile voyager is beyond the solar system Which is powered by Pu-238 - something which is in short supply nowadays, extremely expensive and pretty much inaccessible for a private company like Firefly who built the Blue Ghost lander. > I don’t see why they didn’t use something that’s not solar Cost. NASA paid Firefly $101.5M for the Blue-Ghost 1 contract [1]. Just the RTG used on the MSL Mars Lander cost $109M [2] (not counting the R&D costs). > so they aren’t just littering the moon Well, right now it is harming no one. They can only be seen by cameras orbiting the moon. If and when humanity starts living on the moon, these landers will go in museums and will no longer be "litter". [1] https://spaceflightnow.com/2025/03/18/firefly-aerospaces-blue-ghost-mission-1-concludes-successful-14-day-mission-on-the-moon/ https://spaceflightnow.com/2025/03/18/firefly-aerospaces-blu... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-mission_radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator#Cost https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-mission_radioisotope_the...
- perihelions 1y ago
  For context, some moon rovers have radioisotope heaters, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang%27e_4#Chang'e_lander_and_Yutu-2_rover https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang%27e_4#Chang'e_lander_and... ("Both the stationary lander and Yutu-2 rover are equipped with a radioisotope heater unit (RHU) in order to heat their subsystems during the long lunar nights") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunokhod_1#Rover_description https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunokhod_1#Rover_description ("During the lunar nights, the lid was closed, and a polonium-210 radioisotope heater unit kept the internal components at operating temperature") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_heater_unit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_heater_unit

amenghra 1y ago

The moon is huge compared to a single thing we can currently send there. Comparatively, we are “littering” our own atmosphere a ton more during liftoff.

atkailash 1y ago
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alwa 1y ago

I can’t help but suspect Starship’s recent run of spectacular explosions might frustrate efforts to launch more nuclear-powered craft like the Voyagers too soon…

deleted 1y ago
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atkailash 1y ago
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DarmokJalad1701 1y ago

> Meanwhile voyager is beyond the solar system Which is powered by Pu-238 - something which is in short supply nowadays, extremely expensive and pretty much inaccessible for a private company like Firefly who built the Blue Ghost lander. > I don’t see why they didn’t use something that’s not solar Cost. NASA paid Firefly $101.5M for the Blue-Ghost 1 contract [1]. Just the RTG used on the MSL Mars Lander cost $109M [2] (not counting the R&D costs). > so they aren’t just littering the moon Well, right now it is harming no one. They can only be seen by cameras orbiting the moon. If and when humanity starts living on the moon, these landers will go in museums and will no longer be "litter". [1] https://spaceflightnow.com/2025/03/18/firefly-aerospaces-blue-ghost-mission-1-concludes-successful-14-day-mission-on-the-moon/ https://spaceflightnow.com/2025/03/18/firefly-aerospaces-blu... [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-mission_radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator#Cost https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-mission_radioisotope_the...

perihelions 1y ago
For context, some moon rovers have radioisotope heaters, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang%27e_4#Chang'e_lander_and_Yutu-2_rover https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang%27e_4#Chang'e_lander_and... ("Both the stationary lander and Yutu-2 rover are equipped with a radioisotope heater unit (RHU) in order to heat their subsystems during the long lunar nights") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunokhod_1#Rover_description https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunokhod_1#Rover_description ("During the lunar nights, the lid was closed, and a polonium-210 radioisotope heater unit kept the internal components at operating temperature") https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_heater_unit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_heater_unit