Characterising asteroidal and cometary material on the Moon and its value for future resource utilisation

在整个太阳系的历史上，成千上万的小行星和彗星撞击过月球，导致了我们今天看到的严重的陨石坑表面。越来越多的证据表明，这些天体的一部分在与月球表面的撞击中幸存下来。这是有意义的，原因有二。首先，如果可以从月球上回收撞击物材料，它将产生关于穿过内太阳系的小行星和彗星组成的宝贵信息。其次，撞击的小行星和彗星的残骸可能提供月球上天然稀缺的原材料的本地来源（例如，取决于撞击物的成分，天然金属，碳，氮，有机分子和水合材料），但这将是非常有用的，在未来的人类活动在月球上。本项目将调查这两个方面，但特别强调后者。

Throughout solar system history thousands of asteroids and comets have struck the Moon, resulting in the heavily cratered surface we see today. There is growing evidence that some fraction of these bodies survive impact with the lunar surface. This is of interest for two reasons. Firstly, if impactor material can be recovered from the Moon it will yield valuable information about the composition of asteroids and comets passing through the inner solar system. Secondly, the remains of impacted asteroids and comets may provide local sources of raw materials which are naturally scarce on the Moon (e.g., depending on the composition of the impactor, native metals, carbon, nitrogen, organic molecules, and hydrated materials), but which will be very useful in the context of future human activities on the Moon. This project will investigate both aspects, but with a particular emphasis on the latter.