When the Artemis II crew splashed down, it marked humanity’s first crewed return to lunar orbit since Apollo 17 in 1972. And it’s just the beginning.
For Austin Patridge, a UT San Antonio master’s student in the College of Sciences, the work supporting the next mission is already underway.
In a space known as the Heat and Mass Transfer & Experimental Rheology Lab, or HAMsTER Lab for short, Patridge is researching how to create resilient lunar bricks that could serve as landing pads for spacecraft on the Moon — structures that must withstand extreme temperatures and the powerful forces generated during repeated rocket landings and takeoffs.
At the center of his research is calorimetry, the science of measuring how materials absorb and release heat. By analyzing real Apollo 11 and Apollo 16 lunar soil samples alongside Earth-based simulants, Patridge is working to determine how these materials respond under extremely high temperatures.
“To date, nobody has measured the high-temperature calorimetry of lunar materials enough to completely melt the material,” he said.
A key focus of his work is identifying which lunar soil simulants most accurately replicate real Moon material. In the lab, Patridge melts these materials and forms experimental Moon bricks, testing their potential as reliable building blocks for future lunar infrastructure.
His findings could help bridge a significant knowledge gap, guiding the development of materials capable of supporting future lunar missions where Moon bases are built from resources already on the surface.
