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Lunex Project | |
---|---|
Moon | |
Type | Underground Air Force base |
Site information | |
Controlled by | United States |
Site history | |
Built | Planned to begin after 1967 |
In use | Project canceled |
Garrison information | |
Garrison | 21 USAF personnel |
The Lunex Project was a US Air Force 1958 plan for a crewed lunar landing prior to the Apollo Program. The final lunar expedition plan in 1961 was for a 21-person underground Air Force base on the Moon by 1968 at a total cost of $7.5 billion.[1] The primary distinction between the later Apollo missions and Lunex was the orbital rendezvous maneuver. The Lunex vehicle, composed of a landing module and a lifting body return/re-entry module, would land the entire vehicle and all astronauts on the surface, whereas the final Apollo mission involved a separate ascent module leaving the command module and service module connected in lunar orbit with a single astronaut. The original plan for Apollo was for direct ascent, similar to Lunex.