Regolith Mechanics, Dynamics, and Foundations

Abstract

Due to the differences of the gravitational accelerations of the Earth and lunar environments, geotechnical engineering must be applied differently in the two environments. This study investigates those differences. Of special interest are the static and dynamic behaviors of soil and regolith materials, as well as some foundation systems. The soil and regolith materials are shown to behave in different ways. The regolith material is more sensitive to environmental factors than the Earth material, and may require nonlinear analysis and/or improved modeling techniques. Also, care must be exercised when designing Earth‐based tests to study lunar‐based systems.