This July, we commemorate 53 years since NASA astronaut Neil Armstrong set foot on the Moon. Currently, the space agencies of various countries are trying to pave the way for humans to get to the Moon and even live there. There is a study that calculates that living on Earth's natural satellite will be very expensive.
An expert at Money, a brokerage firm for consumer credit products, has released a mortgage guide for calculating the cost of living on the Moon. Based on Money's calculations, living on the Moon would cost at least USD 325,067 .
This price includes the cost of maintaining home security components such as air seals, industrial air conditioning and heating, meteor-proof windows, isolation rooms, and organic energy sources.
This calculation guide also ranks the most coveted locations for housing on the Moon. The part of the Moon known as the 'Sea of Rains' is considered the perfect location for a family to live in. This region lies to the north and is one of the largest impact craters in the solar system.
The ambition to be able to colonize the Moon is not just wishful thinking. The proof, NASA's Artemis mission will lift off in 2024 and send a crew to the Moon who will explore the Moon's surface. This mission brings hope to build a stable settlement there.
While NASA focuses solely on sending astronauts, space technology companies are looking further into the future when humans contemplate moving from Earth to the Moon.
"With Earth becoming denser and space technology advancing, life on the Moon will soon become a normal thing," the study said.
In this study, Money considers the cost of building and the markup price for selling a house on the Moon to create a comprehensive guide on how to buy a mortgage and adapt to a lifestyle on the Moon.
Money's team also took into account various factors to calculate the cost of a house on the Moon, including the raw materials needed to build the house, the specific materials needed to build the Moon's atmosphere, the astronauts needed to travel, and the average cost of transporting materials to the Moon.
The cost-per-transport data was collected from SpaceX, to calculate the number of logistics shipments to the lunar surface. According to the Moon's mortgage guide, the first fully functional Moon house was $48,454,063.
After this expensive house is completed, the next houses will cost less, around USD 40,662,642 because the building materials and workers are already living on the Moon.
The guide also tells potential residents to expect the property markup to be around 27.61% on average once other humans start moving away from Earth.
Lifestyle on the Moon
The idea of living on the Moon may sound like an exciting life. But keep in mind, those who are brave enough to make that decision must consider the various lifestyles on the Moon that go with it.
One of them is to consider generating energy in extreme weather and temperature conditions. Therefore, the cost of some energy suppliers may force people to consider several alternative options.
"The most efficient way to generate electricity on the Moon is to buy a small nuclear reactor for $1.3 billion," Money said in the study.
Alternatively, Moon residents could invest in 34 solar panels that would generate enough electricity for a single home and only cost $23,616 in comparison to a small nuclear.
Not quite there, once on the Moon, humans also have to learn how to survive there, which means they have to be able to grow their own food.
With an average household of four, it would take a total of seven homes to produce 1.1 tonnes of food on the Moon. With many plants, of course, a large amount of water is needed.
NASA announced in October that there is water on the surface of the Moon that is illuminated by the Sun. This water source can be easily accessed by the space fairing. However, the amount is not enough to irrigate tons of crops.
"To live comfortably for a year, it takes 5.9 tons of water to regulate plant growth and personal hydration for one household," Money explains.
Not to forget, the guide notes that the only way to produce large amounts of water is to purify and reuse wastewater.
Moon poop brought back to Earth from previous missions contains Helium-3. This content is stated by China to solve the world energy crisis. Recent studies say, helium 3 can also be used to power homes on the Moon.
"The development of mining Helium-3 ions found in the Moon's upper crust will, in time, trigger non-radioactive nuclear fusion reactions and produce cleaner and safer energy in greater quantities than is available on Earth today," the study said. the.
After calculating the cost of living on the Moon, the next step is to choose the perfect location, one that fits into your pocket. So, do you think you want to live in the Sea of Rains or Mare Imbrium area? Or do you think living on the Moon is just a fantasy?