The Cannon Group
at the Colorado School of Mines
Research Areas
Space Resources
- Geologic models for lunar polar ice deposits
- Predictive maps of ice favorability
- Prospecting strategies & tools
Regolith Processing
- Regolith simulant synthesis & analysis
- Producing clays from lunar regolith
- Cold sintering of regolith
Planetary Cartography
- Illumination & line of sight modeling
- Landing site analysis
- 2D & 3D visualization, AR/VR
Currently Funded Projects
- NIAC Phase I: Regolith Adaptive Modification System (RAMs) to Support Early Extraterrestrial Planetary Landings and Operations (NASA/Texas A&M)
- NIAC Phase II: Lunar Polar Mining Outpost (NASA/TransAstra)
- NIAC Phase III: Asteroid Provided In-situ Supplies (NASA/TransAstra)
- Project Olympus (ICON)
Facilities & Capabilities
Planetary Cartography Lab
The Planetary Cartography Lab is located in GRL 238, and hosts computing and software resources for mapping, geospatial analysis, and remote sensing for all planetary bodies. Equipment includes an 86" SMART Board interactive display, large format 2D & 3D printers, and VR headsets.
Space Resources Lab
We also have equipment in the shared Space Resources Lab in GRL 140: this includes instruments and materials for synthesizing and analyzing high-fidelity regolith simulants.
Links & Projects
Lunar Mining & Landing Sites — A variety of resources and tools, including "Ice Prospecting: Your Guide to Getting Rich on the Moon"
Planetary Intelligence — Substack where we write mostly about space resources and development
Planetary Simulant Database — We created and maintain the Planetary Simulant Database, a free resource with data on historic and current regolith simulants
Eat Like a Martian — We’re exploring food produced by ISRU, and food logistics for space missions
What we’ve published lately
2021. Neish, C. D., K. M. Cannon, L. L. Tornabene, R. L. Flemming, M. Zanetti, and E. Pilles
Spectral properties of lunar impact melt deposits from Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) data
Icarus, 114392.
2020. Cannon, K. M., A. N. Deutsch, J. W. Head, and D. T. Britt
Stratigraphy of ice and ejecta deposits at the lunar poles
Geophysical Research Letters, e2020GL088920.
2020. Cannon, K. M., and D. T. Britt
Accessibility dataset for large permanent cold traps at the lunar poles
Earth and Space Science, e2020EA001291.
2020. Cannon, K. M., and D. T. Britt
A Geologic Model for Lunar Ice Deposits at Mining Scales
Icarus, 347, 113778.
Contact Info
Feel free to contact me about our groups’ work, potential speaking appearances, or possible collaborations.
Email: cannon@mines.edu
Cell: (+1) 401-340-6608