Schmitt became a consultant to the Fusion Technology Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1986, advising on
the economic geology of lunar resources, eventually teaching in the course “Resources from Space” from 1996-2004. He
remains an Associate Fellow of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin.
During NASA’s Constellation Program, Harrison Schmitt became chairman of the NASA Advisory Council in November
2005 and served until October 2008. From 2017 to 2022 he has served as a member of the National Space Council’s User
Advisory Board.

Dr. Schmitt is a prolific writer, having been published in many diverse venues, including Science Magazine, Icraus, The Wall
Street Journal, and the National Geographic Magazine. In 2006, Springer published his book, “Return to the Moon,” outlining
a private sector approach to accessing lunar helium-3 for fusion power, medical diagnosis, and other applications. He also
electronically publishes an annotated and illustrated version of the voice transcript from the Apollo 17 mission.
Active in the private aerospace business sector, Schmitt was a Director of the Orbital ATK Corporation and its predecessor
company, Orbital Sciences Corporation (1983-2018). In 1990, he joined the Board of Directors of the Draper Laboratory, and,
as a retired Director, he continues as an Emeritus Member of the Corporation that oversees the Laboratory.
Dr. Schmitt continues to synthesize scientific data related to his exploration of Taurus-Littrow, including participation in
NASA’s “Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis” (ANGSA) Program, as well as consulting with NASA and private
entities on issues involved with NASA’s Artemis Program to return to the Moon.

His book, "Return to the Moon" is a legal brief, in which Schmitt makes the case for returning to the Moon to mine the isotope helium-3. He claims that because fossil fuels are limited in supply and because their extraction and use harm the environment, our rapidly industrializing world requires new sources of energy. The ultimate solution, he suggests, is the generation of power by nuclear fusion—not of deuterium and tritium, as is usually proposed, but of deuterium and helium-3.


https://www.americanscientist.org/article/mining-the-moon

Part of the book "Return to the Moon" by Harrison Schmitt

https://download.e-bookshelf.de/download/0000/0010/42/L-G-0000001042-0002369223.pdf

But how could we mine it on the Moon?

How is natural gas mined?

Once the gas deposit has been reached, the temperature is dropped inside the deposit low enough to turn the natural gas into its liquid state. This is done with liquid nitrogen. The natural gas liquid is then transported to the surface by pumps where it can either be stored in large tanks or transported to wherever it is needed.



https://www.sciencing.com/how-natural-gas-mined-4884857/

They will need to update their website soon :) 🌑 ⬆️

The Wisconsin Center for Space Automation and Robotics (WCSAR) was formed in 1987, as one of NASA’s Centers for the Commercial Development of Space, to study how 3He could be mined from the Moon.

Researchers at WCSAR produced several mining concepts including mobile miners that excavate and process lunar regolith and in-situ volatile release and capture approaches.

The most recent design iteration, the M-3, was completed in 2006.

The M-3 was designed to collect 33 kg of 3He per year.
The miner would excavate down to a 3 m depth over a 1 km2 area each year with a 4 m diameter bucket wheel excavator.
This would be enough 3He to fuel one ~400 MW fusion power plant per year.
The 33 kg/yr collection rate assumes a 10 ppb 3He concentration and that the miner only operates during 90% of the lunar daytime (3942 hours/year).
The M-3 is designed to excavate 1258 tonnes/hr, heat 556 tonnes/hr, move at 23 m/hr and consume about 350 kW of electrical power.
If the 3He concentration in the undisturbed maria regolith is 20 ppb, the
collected 3He would be closer to 66 kg/yr.

Other solar wind volatiles (H2, 4He, CO2, CH4, N2, H2O), which also diffuse out of the regolith with heating, are collected in the M-3 design.

Lunar Helium-3: Mining Concepts,
Extraction Research, and Potential

ISRU Synergies
Aaron D.S. Olson
NASA Kennedy Space Center, FL, 32899, U.S.A


This paper describes various methods and designs specifically proposed for mining helium
3, and summarizes the methods, results and potential implications of recent research on
helium extraction from lunar regolith simulant.
This paper also touches on the potential
synergy of lunar propellant production with helium-3 mining and some of the recent
advancements in fusion technology related to future helium-3 fueled fusion reactors.

US Nuclear Corp. and Solar System Resources Corp. in Poland have signed a historic transatlantic agreement for the supply of the rare helium-3 isotope from deposits located on the Moon.

Solar System Resources has agreed to provide 500 kilograms of helium-3 to U.S. Nuclear Corp. in the 2028-2032 timeframe.


https://me.smenet.org/webContent.cfm?webarticleid=3450

Mining helium-3 on the Moon has been talked about forever—now a company will try


https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/03/mining-helium-3-on-the-moon-has-been-talked-about-forever-now-a-company-will-try/

Interestingly, the Artemis paper suggests approx 1 million tonnes of lunar rock needs to be processed to produce 70 tonnes of He-3 - so you would need to process about 13 million tonnes of lunar soil. Might sound like a lot, but the US alone produces approx 700 million tonnes of coal annualy.

The Helium-3 Shortage: Supply, Demand, and
Options for Congress
Dec, 22nd, 2010.

Except for space exploration and expansion, bubble worlder's benefits from helium 3 mining include medical use, clean energy solutions for power supply all around the world...

While it can be made artificially, it’s an incredibly rare substance on Earth: a report from 2011 showed that, in total, .01 metric tons of helium 3 exist on Earth, and it only comprises .0001 percent of the American government’s helium reserve.


https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/helium-3-shortage-reaches-across-sectors

The idea of harvesting a clean and efficient form of energy from the Moon has stimulated science fiction and fact in recent decades.

The Apollo programme's own geologist, Harrison Schmidt, has repeatedly made the argument for Helium-3 mining, whilst Gerald Kulcinski at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is another leading proponent. He has created a small reactor at the Fusion Technology Institute, but so far it has not been possible to create the helium fusion reaction with a net power output.