Space Resource Technologies
ALL SIMULANTS
All currently available high-fidelity Lunar, Martian, and Asteroid regolith simulants.
Lunar Regolith Simulants
The LHS-1 Lunar Highlands Simulant is a high-fidelity, mineral-based simulant appropriate for a generic or average highlands location on the Moon. The highlands are considered to be the “lighter” regions of the moon’s surface which is mainly comprised of plagioclase, or often referred to as Anorthosite.
The simulant is not made of a single terrestrial lithology, but accurately captures the texture of lunar regolith by combining both mineral and rock fragments in accurate proportions referencing the returned Apollo mission regolith.
Lunar Highlands 25% Agglutinated Simulant (LHS-1-25A) is a higher-fidelity variation of LHS-1 and is a mineral-based simulant appropriate for a generic or average highlands location on the Moon. With intermediate regolith maturity - it speaks to the integrated exposure the regolith had to the micrometeorite and solar wind environment.
LHS-1E is a simplified version of our Lunar Highlands Simulant that is geared toward bulk orders. This simulant is perfect for filling regolith bins, rover testing, and any usage with the priority of utilizing the geotechnical characteristics of Lunar Highlands regolith. It is geotechnically equivalent to our Lunar Highlands Simulant with minor chemical fidelity differences. There is no significant change to texture, color, or mechanical properties.
Lunar Highlands Simulant (LHS-2) is a high-fidelity, mineralogy-based simulant chemically identical to our LHS-1. LHS-2 appropriately mimics a generic or average highlands regolith sample on the Moon. The highlands are considered to be the “lighter” regions on the Moon’s surface which is mainly plagioclase, often referred to as anorthosite.
LHS-2E is an engineering grade version of our Lunar Highlands Simulant that is geared toward bulk orders. This simulant is perfect for filling regolith bins, rover testing, and any usage with the priority of utilizing the geotechnical characteristics of Lunar Highlands regolith. It is geotechnically equivalent to our Lunar Highlands Simulant with minor chemical fidelity differences. There is no significant change to texture, color, or mechanical properties.
Lunar Mare Simulant, LMS-1, simulates the Lunar Mare regions on the Moon, which are the darker regions of the lunar surface. LMS-1 is a high-fidelity, mineral-based analog that is globally used for any educational or research use. This recipe was designed based on information collected from the returned Apollo Lunar Soil samples.
The simulant is made of several terrestrial minerals, and accurately captures the texture of lunar regolith by combining both mineral and rock fragments (i.e., polymineralic grains) in precise proportions.
The LMS-1D Lunar Mare Moon Dust Simulant has been developed for dust mitigation experiments and other applications where very fine dust is needed. LMS-1D is made of the same base material as LMS-1, our high-fidelity, mineral-based simulant appropriate for a generic or average mare location on the Moon.
LMS-1E is a simplified version of our Lunar Mare Simulant (LMS-1) geared towards bulk orders. This simulant is the ideal choice for large- and medium-scale engineering studies, in support of future human exploration to the Moon. This simulant’s chemical composition, mineralogy, and particle size distribution fall within range of being geotechnically equivalent with minor chemical fidelity differences. There is no significant change to texture, color, or mechanical properties.
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Lunar Mare Simulant (LMS-2) is a high-fidelity, mineralogy-based simulant chemically identical to our LMS-1. LMS-2 appropriately simulates the Lunar Mare regions on the Moon, which are the darker regions of the lunar surface. This recipe was designed based on information collected from the returned Apollo Lunar Soil samples and thus, the particle size distribution of the simulant is targeted to match that of typical Apollo soils.
The Lunar South Pole Simulant (LSP-2) replicates the regolith found at the South Pole of the Moon. This region of the Lunar surface is dominated by Anorthosite, with small amounts of basalt spread throughout. This simulant features a particle size distribution matching the Lunar Highlands region of the Moon up to a size of 2mm, with custom size distributions available upon request. LSP-2 is mineralogically, chemically, and geotechnically similar to actual Lunar Highlands regolith, making it ideal for scientific applications, research, and studies related to the NASA Artemis missions.
These agglutinates are made up of 99% Anorthosite and 1% Iron. They simulate the glassy and magnetic properties of Lunar agglutinates.
This product contains the individual minerals that make up our Lunar regolith simulants, Lunar Highlands (LHS-1, LHS-1D) and Lunar Mare (LMS-1, LMS-1D). The minerals in this sample set are the same that are used in our batch simulants. This sample set has been made available for any mineral characterization, such as XRD or XRF, or baseline measurements needed for experimentation.
Martian Regolith Simulants
Mars Global Regolith Simulant (MGS-1) is a mineralogical standard analog based on data collected from the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover. MGS-1 is made by sourcing a spectrum of terrestrial minerals, then mixed together in specific proportions to generally replicate the Martian surface. This is in contrast to previous Mars simulants that were typically sourced from a single terrestrial deposit (basalt or palagonite).
MGS-1C is a modified version of the root MGS-1 simulant and is enriched in hydrated clay minerals (smectite).Four Cases were concluded in the NASA Mars Water In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Planning (M-WIP) Study. The MGS-1C simulant represents the Reference Case “C”; Case C is designated as a natural concentration of phyllosilicate minerals.
MGS-1S is a modified version of the root Mars Global Simulant, MGS-1, and is enriched with polyhydrated sulfate gypsum for proper representation. Four Cases were concluded in the NASA Mars Water In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Planning (M-WIP) Study. The MGS-1S simulant represents the Reference Case “B” – a natural concentration of poly-hydrated sulfate minerals.
Jezero Delta (JEZ-1) is a mixture of MGS-1 mineralogy with smectite clay, Mg-carbonate, and additional olivine that have all been detected from orbital remote sensing in the Jezero delta deposits.
The state of lithificaiton, mineralogy, and grain size distribution are likely variable throughout the Jezero deltas; JEZ-1 represents unconsolidated material but can be compacted under various pressures to form a more cohesive solid.
Asteroid Regolith Simulants
CI Carbonaceous Chondrite Simulant, also known as CI-E, is a general-purpose asteroid regolith simulant based on the Orgueil meteorite. Produced according to the analysis made in Bland et al. 2004, CI-E replicates the chemical and geological properties perfectly, while maintaining mineralogically accuracy except for smectite being replaced with serpentine to limit its hazardous properties.
CM-E Asteroid Simulant is a general-purpose asteroid regolith simulant based on the analysis of the Murchison meteorite in Bland et al. 2004 and Howard et al. 2009. The CM-E mineralogical mix contains the necessary geological and chemical composition for research of asteroid properties.