In a groundbreaking development for space exploration, scientists have successfully created solar cells from simulated Moon dust, potentially offering a sustainable and efficient solution for powering future lunar missions. The study, published on April 3 in the Cell Press journal Device, highlights a novel approach to generating electricity in space using in-situ resources, reducing the need to transport heavy materials from Earth.
The innovative lunar regolith-based solar cells are capable of converting sunlight into energy with high efficiency, while also demonstrating strong resistance to radiation damage—a critical factor for long-term functionality in space environments. By utilizing materials already present on the Moon, the technology could drastically lower the cost and complexity of establishing lunar habitats and research stations.
As space agencies and private companies continue to push toward permanent Moon bases and deep space missions, this advancement could play a key role in solving one of space travel’s biggest challenges: securing reliable, long-term energy sources.
The study not only opens doors for energy independence on the Moon, but also strengthens the vision of sustainable and scalable off-Earth infrastructure development using local resources.
“The solar cells used in space now are amazing, reaching efficiencies of 30% to even 40%, but that efficiency comes with a price,” says lead researcher Felix Lang of the University of Potsdam, Germany. “They are very expensive and are relatively heavy because they use glass or a thick foil as cover. It’s hard to justify lifting all these cells into space.”
Lang’s team is pioneering a shift towards utilizing lunar resources by exploring the creation of solar cells from materials available on the Moon, eliminating the need to haul them from Earth. Their key innovation is the replacement of Earth-made glass with glass derived from lunar regolith—the Moon’s loose, rocky surface material. This single change could lead to a remarkable 99.4% reduction in spacecraft launch mass and a 99% decrease in transport costs, making sustained lunar settlements a more viable prospect.
To validate this concept, the researchers produced “moonglass” from a simulated Moon dust and integrated it into a new type of solar cell. By pairing this moonglass with perovskite, a class of cheaper, simpler-to-manufacture, and highly efficient sunlight-to-electricity converting crystals, the resulting panels exhibited an energy output of up to 100 times greater per gram launched into space compared to traditional solar panels.
“If you cut the weight by 99%, you don’t need ultra-efficient 30% solar cells, you just make more of them on the Moon,” says Lang. “Plus, our cells are more stable against radiation, while the others would degrade over time.”
