Bootstrapping a lunar civilization

Abstract

In this chapter we introduce and discuss the two financial aspects of the creation of a lunar settlement. The first is: How do we fund the return to the Moon? And the second aspect is: How do we make it self-sustaining once we are there? One of the great challenges that faced our space pioneers was how to finance the settlement of the Moon. Initially, only rockets were available to carry mass into orbit from the Earth to the Moon. Near the turn of the 20th century, historical documents¹ tell us that Atlas and Delta rockets accounted for about 90% of U.S. commercial launches, each bringing about 8,000–10,000 lb into geosynchronous orbit. An Atlas launch cost about $80 million and the Delta about $60 million.