Polar Resources Ice Mining Experiment-1 (PRIME-1)

• Summary: PRIME-1 is a suite of two instruments comprised of the TRIDENT drill that will extract lunar soil (regolith) up to 1-meter below the surface (approximately 3 feet), and MSOLO, a mass spectrometer designed to analyze the composition of that sample for water and other components. Samples from multiple depths will be analyzed. In addition, it will measure the composition of gases emanating near the drill activity. This will help scientists understand resources on the Moon (referred to as ‘in situ resources’) in preparation for future Artemis missions to send humans to the Moon.
• Instruments Included: The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploring New Terrains (TRIDENT) Drill; Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO)
• Type of Instruments: Drill and Mass Spectrometer
• Key Measurements: Surface and subsurface volatiles
• Task Order: CLPS TO PRIME-1
• Lead Development Organization: KSC
• Principle Investigator/Project Manager: Dr. Jackie Quinn

The Regolith and Ice Drill for Exploring New Terrain (TRIDENT)

• Summary: TRIDENT will excavate lunar regolith and subsurface material to 1-meter deep (3.3 feet) and measures forces, displacements, and temperatures for regolith bulk properties. This brings samples to the surface where MSOLO can inspect them for volatiles, with water and oxygen being the most impactful in terms of resource potential. Most samples will be about 10 cm in length giving ten samples across the entire 1-meter drill hole. We were able to use a drill like this on Apollo 15, and this will help us maintain longer missions in the future. TRIDENT is a rotary percussive drill, but unlike its ancestor, it does not need humans to operate it. It weighs 16 kg (35 pounds) and should be capable of digging a hole 1-meter deep (3.3 feet) in 10 cm (4-inch) bites. This approach allows for a more accurate determination of how deep substances of interest can be found in the soil. The drill bit at the tip has carbide cutting teeth. These are harder than steel to maintain their sharpness, and strong enough to drill into basalt if needed.
• Type of Instrument: 1-meter Hammer drill
• Key Measurement: Excavation of sub-surface material; measuring forces, displacements, and temperatures for regolith bulk properties (e.g., subsurface temperature vs. depth; strength of regolith vs. depth)
• Task Order: CLPS TO PRIME-1
• Lead Development Organization: Honeybee Robotics
• Payload PI: Dr. Kris Zacny (Honeybee)

Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO)

• Summary: MSOLO can observe the sublimation rates of volatile gases, providing valuable insight into their stability when interacting with the cold lunar soil beneath the surface. This data will inform future resource extraction technologies, helping us understand how these gases behave in lunar conditions. These volatiles could play a significant role in sustaining long-term lunar habitation – water, for example, can be converted into fuel or used for life support, while other gases may be incorporated into processing systems or used as buffer gases. Understanding lunar volatiles has implications for future missions to the Moon and even Mars, helping us plan for long-term stays and self-sufficiency.
• Type of Instrument: Quadrupole mass spectrometer
• Key Measurement: Composition of the Moon – especially looking for water
• Task Order: CLPS TO PRIME-1
• Lead Development Organization: KSC, INFICON
• Payload PI: Dr. Janine Captain, Dr. Jackie Quinn

Laser Retroreflector (LRA)

• Summary: A retroreflector bounces any light that shines on it directly backward (180 degrees from the incoming light). The LRA is a collection of eight of these, each a 1.25-cm diameter glass corner cube prism, all embedded in an aluminum hemisphere (painted gold as shown here) and is mounted to the lander deck. This design ensures that the LRA can retroreflect (i.e., bounce) laser light from other orbiting and landing spacecraft over a wide range of incoming directions and efficiently retroreflect the laser signal directly back at the originating spacecraft. This enables precision laser ranging, which is a measurement of the distance between the orbiting or landing spacecraft to the LRA on the lander. The LRA is a passive optical instrument and will function as a permanent fiducial (i.e., location) marker on the Moon for decades to come. (Note: this LRA design is too small for laser ranging from Earth).
• Type of Instrument: Passive optical device that reflects laser light directly backward (for laser ranging)
• Key Measurement: Precise distances
• Task Order: CLPS TO PRIME-1
• Lead Development Organization: NASA GSFC
• Payload PI: Dr. Xiaoli Sun

Note: See also TO2-AB, TO2-IM, and TO20A