Formulation , Modeling and Analysis of a Mission to the Moon ’ S Malapert

Introduction: NASA’s program for human return to the Moon incorporates several major themes, including science activities, preparation for crewed missions to Mars, and extending human presence on the Moon to enable eventual human settlement [1]. To a considerable extent, these themes are complementary, but the themes and the relative emphasis of specialized subsets of interest within them also compete for limited budgets and resources, requiring the formulation of alternative mission architectures and a comprehensive system for choosing among them. The selected architectures, in turn, require investments in technologies to provide the requisite capabilities. This study develops and analyzes a proposed exploration mission to the Moon’s Malapert Mountain. It employs a systems-engineering tool enabling an objective, thorough, and traceable exploration of the trade space to maximize productivity in making these selections.