As a potential nuclear fuel, 3He element is significant for both the solution of impending human energy crisis and the conservation of natural environment. Lunar regolith contains abundant and easily extracted 3He. Based on the analyses of the impact factors of 3He abundance, here we have compared a few key assessment parameters and approaches used in lunar regolith 3He reserve estimation and some representative estimation results, and discussed the issues concerned in 3He abundance variation and 3He reserve estimation. Our studies suggest that in a range of at least meters deep, 3He abundance in lunar regolith is homogeneously distributed and generally does not depend on the depth; lunar regolith has long been in a saturation state of 3He trapped by minerals through chemical bonds, and the temperature fluctuation on the lunar surface exerts little influence on the lattice 3He abundance. In terms of above conclusions and the newest lunar regolith depth data from the microwave brightness temperature retrieval of the "ChangE-1" Lunar Microwave Sounder, a new 3He reserve estimation has been presented.
LI DiHui, LIU HeGuang, ZHANG WeiGuo, LI Yun & XU ChuanDong Center for Space Science and Applied Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
Investigation on Lunar polar area is almost every lunar mission’s primary objective in recent years. The rationale behind it is that illumination and ice resources in this area can be potentially very helpful for constructing lunar human base. In this paper, we analyze microwave radiometric characteristics of the Moon by using the newly acquired Chang’E-1 Lunar Microwave Sounder (CELMS) data. Microwave brightness temperature at Lunar South Pole (LSP) is distributed regularly with a style of "ring-in-ring", decreasing from equator to pole. Regolith temperature gradient is bigger at lunar equator than at polar area. Brightness temperature diurnal difference decreases with observation frequency. Microwave brightness temperature distribution maps at LSP and Lunar North Pole (LNP) have been made based on the analysis. It is found that microwave brightness temperature becomes to synchronize with elevation beyond -85° latitude. This phenomenon is related to lightening condition and indicates temperature distribution at LSP. The brightness temperature anomaly cold points are potentially cold trap areas for water or ice while hot points imply plenty of illumination resources there.
