Rules of the Road: Engineers Have Built a Traffic Control System for the Moon
The saying “cleared for takeoff” has a whole different meaning in space.
Engineers have developed a traffic control system for the moon to manage increasing spacecraft traffic at the planned lunar base. NASA's Gateway and other spacecraft will use the near-rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO) to orbit both poles of the moon in this new arrangement, which is more complex than managing a single space station.
With multiple spacecraft sharing the same orbit, the risk of collisions and serious damages increases, so effective traffic management is crucial. Diane Davis, associate professor of space engineering at Texas A&M, emphasizes that crew safety and mission success depend on it. "The future of lunar explorations depends as much on the traffic management as it does on the rocket science," she said.
The control system functions similarly to Earth's air traffic control, managing spacecraft's paths, orbits, and rendezvous points. Managing spacecraft loitering in orbit and planning their return trips to Earth is essential to avoid fuel waste and collisions. Unlike Earth, the moon has no physical airport or ground-based navigation system. Engineers had to devise ways to "park" spacecraft moving in space without GPS assistance.
The NRHO offers a balance between proximity to the lunar surface for cargo deliveries and sufficient distance to minimize fuel consumption. The system successfully simulated multiple spacecraft operating in the same orbit without colliding. This innovative traffic control system will be tested with the upcoming Capstone 02 mission.
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