About the Moonbase Integrated Energy System

A moonbase must survive the two-week lunar night, cover its own life support and industry, and ideally export enough helium-3 to offset costs. This tool models the whole energy balance — daytime solar, night storage, total demand, and net surplus — so you can size a base that actually closes its books.

It frames the base as a single integrated system rather than isolated subsystems, which is how power really constrains lunar settlement.

How to use it

1. Set demand, solar generation, and storage assumptions.
2. Run the simulation to read total demand, daytime solar, and night storage in megawatt-hours.
3. See net surplus, ISRU self-sufficiency, and the panels-per-day the base can fabricate.
4. Check the helium-3 export revenue that offsets operating cost.

How it works

The model balances generation against demand across the lunar day-night cycle: daytime solar must cover live load plus enough stored energy to carry the base through the long night. Net surplus is what remains for growth after survival needs are met.

It also tracks self-sufficiency — how much of the base's own panels and consumables it can make in situ — because a base that manufactures its own solar and recycles its own consumables scales without waiting on Earth resupply.

Worked example

Sizing solar and storage to survive the night while leaving a surplus lets the base fabricate additional panels each day and bank a helium-3 export credit against costs — the compounding loop that turns an outpost into a self-growing settlement.

Frequently asked questions

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