Washington State University researchers discovered that a liquid nitrogen spray could remove more than 98% of the lunar dust from space suits.
Not only does lunar dust pose a danger to astronaut health, it's "like running coarse sandpaper over billion-dollar instrumentation and equipment," saidDuring the Apollo missions in the 1960s and early 1970s, astronauts tried unsuccessfully to remove the dust from their spacesuits with a brush.Astronauts also suffered from "lunar hay fever," and researchers think longer exposure to the dust could cause lung damage similar to that of black lung disease.
This photograph was taken at Tranquility Base on July 20, 1969, when humans first walked on the Moon. Photo: Courtesy of NASAThe researchers are now working to fully understand and model the complex interactions between the dust particles and liquid nitrogen that allows the cleaning process to work. They are also applying for another grant to test the technology in conditions that more closely approximate outer space.
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