Author(s) :

Grayson Johnston.

Volume/Issue :

Abstract :

Global interest in the Moon diminished with the conclusion of the United States Apollo Missions of the 1960s and 1970s. However, this decreasing interest is starting to turn around as NASA conducts its Artemis missions in order to promote increased interest in going back to the Moon. Interest on the Moon is back on the rise as many space agencies – including the United States, China, Japan, Canada, and the European Space Agency – are both competing and working together to create a permanent presence on the Moon. In order to accomplish this, we will not only have to choose a suitable landing site for a task of this magnitude, but also an exact purpose of what a permanent lunar base would do. From acting as a location for brand new research capabilities, such as realizing the effects of low gravity on human physiology and the utilization of new types of telescopes unusable here on Earth, to being a brand-new step forward for humankind’s exploration of space, a lunar base could have many benefits. This review examines what exactly we can use a lunar base for and some of the most prominent and viable candidates for places to land on the Moon for a mission of this scale and complexity.