Positioning solution in lunar mining

Ignjatovic, Danijela (author), Vižintin, Goran (mentor), Poslončec-Petrić, Vesna (comentor)

Today space mining is a one of most interesting investments which space agencies and private companies are dealing with. Space resources are excellent ore which can be used in space or be brought back to Earth. Application of new technologies and operational methodologies in terrestrial mining sector targets to obtain a beneficial outcome in a long term. Instrumentation and monitoring systems for subsidence, shafts, underground tunnelling, storing facilities, etc. are often automated. To implement these systems into Moon lava tubes will provide information of mines state, integrated enhanced protection, and early warning solutions. Navigation and positioning in mines deemed to be unstable in parts of mining tunnels when the external reference points are very far apart, thus significantly increasing the error of the internal network. In this dissertation an innovative analytical and numerical solution for better positioning in the mines, yielding to increased accuracy of the control points, while reducing the time needed for performing measurements. This approach will be a spin off for lunar missions where navigation system is required. The goal of the doctoral thesis was to propose the navigation system which will be established and served for all missions located under the region of interest. This thesis presents a combination of terrestrial testing cases and application of their positioning solutions outside of Earth’s borders, in that case terrestrial methods can have a dual use, on the Earth and on the Moon. As an outcome from this research is proposition of navigation and positioning solution called Lunar Regional Navigation System (LRNTS) over the lunar Shackleton Crater. The system acts same as GNSS terrestrial space segment with difference that on the Moon system is located as a ground segment. Replacement of satellites were done on the way that pseudolite transceiver model is used where both navigation transmitter and receiver are integrated together on the board of the instrument. As a strong support to this concept, the terrestrial geodetic measurements in mining were included and simulatively applied to lunar navigation model. Measurements and collected data were taken from Slovenian mining sites: Lipica II natural stone quarry and Velenje coal mine.

• Language: English
• Keywords: space resources, space mining, lunar navigation, precise positioning, control network, Shackleton Crater, lunar mining, lunar lava tube
• Work type: Doctoral dissertation
• Organization: NTF - Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering
• Year: 2024
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-156174
• Publication date in RUL: 11.05.2024

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Rešitev pozicioniranja v lunarnem rudarstvu

Abstract

Rudarjenje v vesolju je danes ena najbolj zanimivih naložb, s katerimi se ukvarjajo vesoljske agencije in zasebna podjetja. Vesoljski viri vsebujejo odlične mineralne surovine, ki jih je mogoče direktno uporabiti v vesolju ali pa transportirati na Zemljo. Cilj uporabe novih tehnologij in operativnih metodologij v terestričnem rudarjenju je doseči dolgoročne ugodne rezultate. Instrumentalni in nadzorni sistemi za spremljanje posedanja, deformacij jaškov, rovov, predorov, skladiščnih objektov itd. so pogosto avtomatizirani. Implementacija teh sistemov v Lunine lava cevi bo omogočila informacije o stanju v rudnikih, integrirano izboljšano zaščito in rešitve za zgodnje opozarjanje. Navigacija in pozicioniranje v rudnikih veljata za nenatančne v delih rudarskih rovov, ko so zunanje referenčne točke zelo oddaljene, kar znatno poveča napako notranjega merskega omrežja. V doktorski nalogi je predstavljena inovativna analitična in numerična rešitev za boljše pozicioniranje v rudnikih, ki prinaša večjo natančnost kontrolnih točk, hkrati pa skrajša čas, ki je potreben za izvajanje meritev. Ta pristop je izhodišče za bodoče lunarne misije, kjer bo potreben navigacijski sistem. Cilj doktorske naloge je predlagati navigacijski sistem, ki bo vzpostavljen na območjih izven zemeljskih rudarskih aktivnostih. Doktorsko delo predstavlja kombinacijo primerov zemeljskega testiranja in uporabo njihovih rešitev za določanje položaja izven meja Zemlje, v tem primeru imajo zemeljske metode lahko dvojno uporabo, na Zemlji in na Luni. Rezultat te raziskave je predlog rešitve za navigacijo in določanje položaja, imenovane Lunarni regionalni navigacijski sistem (LRNTS) nad luninim kraterjem Shackleton. Sistem deluje enako kot zemeljski vesoljski segment GNSS, le da se na Luni sistem nahaja kot zemeljski segment. Zamenjava satelitov je bila izvedena tako, da se uporablja psevdolitni model oddajnika-sprejemnika, kjer sta navigacijski oddajnik in sprejemnik integrirana skupaj na plošči instrumenta. Kot preizkus tega koncepta so bile vključene terestrične geodetske meritve v rudarstvu, ki so bile simulativno uporabljene v modelu lunarne navigacije. Meritve in zbrani podatki so bili vzeti iz slovenskih rudarskih območij: kamnoloma naravnega kamna Lipica II in Premogovnika Velenje.

• Keywords: vesoljski viri, vesoljsko rudarjenje, lunarna navigacija, natančno pozicioniranje, nadzorna mreža, krater Shackleton, lunino rudarjenje, lunarna lava cev