[Doctor 2Brains]

for later

[MissMagnolia]

Some experts estimate there a millions of tons in lunar soil — and that a single Space-Shuttle load would power the entire United States for a year. Both China and Russia have stated their nations’ interest in helium-3.

Mining the moon ..... I can hear the enviro-wackos starting up the alert sirens now!

[Lx]

It also bodes ill for the prospect of fusion using helium-3, a rare helium isotope that is missing a neutron. Physicists have yet to achieve pure helium-3 fusion, but if they did, we’d have a clean, virtually infinite power source. Or so the theory goes.

So in other words, helium 3 fusion is twenty years in the future regardless of how much we have?

[Gaffer]

Truthfully? Instead of spending trillions for a moon base, I’d like to see effort exerted at removing SCHIP, SNAP, AFDC, EITC, SSI, SSDI, Section 8, and providing substantive and results-oriented judgement at getting our leeches off subsistence. We CANNOT do both.

[hoosiermama]

Newt mentioned on Greta last night that the moon had water. That to transport water from the moon would be easier due to the gravity resistance, if we were indeed working space.

[NordP]

I’m sorry, I LIKE the fact that innovative ideas MIGHT HAVE A CHANCE to become reality again.

[G Larry]

Cost/Benefit???

No way bringing He back from the moon would ever be cost effective.

[2nd Amendment]

I am all for Newt’s moonbase. Especially if we can get them to vote Republican. With millions of illegals coming across our borders and lining up to vote democrat, we need all the votes we can get!

[Fido969]

Helium is used for arc welding and leak detection, mostly, although NASA uses it to pressurize space shuttle fuel tanks. Liquid helium cools infrared detectors, nuclear reactors, and the superconducting magnets used in MRI machines, too.

It also makes you talk like Donald Duck.

[taildragger]

Having grown up within 1/2 hr distance wise from a major supplier to the Apollo Program, we were alway told of what came out of the space program as commerical spin offs, via local media.

Tang, heart monitors, Velcro, advances in printed circuitry (that may have lead to the microchip when you think of it), to name 4 of them.

The point is Newt is siting "helium" but he needs to get more macro about the life changing commerical spin offs that will come from pushing the envelope of science to meet the goals of this mission.

He is right, I am not sure he is selling it properly.

[sit-rep]

if this is true, it’s incredible. I support the idea!

[Matchett-PI]

bttt

[cicero2k]

It also bodes ill for the prospect of fusion using helium-3, a rare helium isotope that is missing a neutron. Physicists have yet to achieve pure helium-3 fusion, but if they did, we’d have a clean, virtually infinite power source. Or so the theory goes.

This is going to be portrayed as right wing wackiness. Sort of their version of the Bullet Train and Windmill agenda.

It's hard enough to figure if cold fusion is viable.

Get a laboratory version using H-3 fusion working, scale it; then it will be good to consider moon mining. Then, private money would at least partly pay.

[Stosh]

Somebody going to tell me where we’ve got all the fusion reactors we’re going to fuel with this stuff?

Seriously, researchers have been playing with tokamaks and the like for decades, and as best I recall, we haven’t even been able to sustain a fusion reaction for a whole second.

[OldCorps]

Newt Gingrich alone could provide enough hot air to power a 300MW power station.

Newt Gingrich: Gasbag

[Gene Eric]

We should be in a position to land on the moon at a moments notice.

#ck the entitlement crowd that makes such novel operations a financial impossibility.

[RedMDer]

Newt Discusses the Facts and Florida With Greta
Newt speaks about this topic in this interview.

[ckilmer]

newt’s behind the curve on nuclear energy. the real deal is thorium. There’s immense quantities of thorium here in the USA and elsewhere on earth. There’s also plenty on the moon and mars.

what’s more there have already been experimental reactors developed to use it. thorium reactors were jewels in the crown of the US nuclear program during its heyday from the 40’ to the early 70’s. a democrat even briefly ran for office on the sole plank of pushing thorium energy. because is cheap and safe and easy to make (compared to uranium).

[Bender2]

BUMO for later read

[PA Engineer]

Nations and private companies are racing to be the first to scout the moon for Helium 3, a rare gas which could make almost unlimited, clean fusion energy a reality.

There was actually a recent SciFi film that dealt with this subject. The movie was Moon. Click on the image to go to the IMDb review.



Be forewarned the trailers have spoilers in them. This was a very low budget film that was a sleeper. My Wife does not like SciFi, but she found this film immensely interesting.

If you can get a copy it is very much worth the watch (a couple of times). The plot line is haunting.