Case scenarios for structural health monitoring for future lunar architectures

Assumptions about future lunar base architectures and operations will likely drive the creation of foundational requirements and design specifications. The lunar environment poses significant technical and logistical hurdles that will require innovative approaches to ensure the long-term sustainability and safety of lunar habitats, such as extreme temperature fluctuations, prolonged exposure to cosmic radiation, and the variability of transporting resources. Integrating robust structural health monitoring (SHM) systems into the design and operation of these lunar outposts will be crucial for detecting and mitigating potential issues before they escalate, thereby enhancing the overall reliability and longevity of the lunar infrastructure. Damage is characterized as changes to the material properties of these systems, including alterations to their internal connectivity, which ultimately impacts overall system performance. For future lunar architecture bases, it is essential to incorporate SHM sensors and data collection capabilities to monitor current and potential levels of damage. However, it is important for decision-making managers and designers to be aware of the type of facility being planned to warrant the type of SHM sensor to be utilized. Given that buildings are subjected to diverse loads and environmental factors over time, the implementation of SHM is crucial for early damage detection and guiding maintenance decision-making in pre-construction planning. This report presents the primary components of SHM in the context of future lunar architectural systems and provides case scenarios for potential lunar facility architectures that would benefit from SHM systems.