Optimal placement of solar reflectors at the lunar south pole

A recent NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts study suggests that several reflectors placed around the perimeter of Shackleton Crater may be capable of redirecting uninterrupted solar energy to a region within the crater year-round-effectively creating an energy oasis in the otherwise dark and cold extreme environment. This work further explores this concept by identifying sets of reflector placement locations around the perimeter of Shackleton Crater that maximize the amount of time in which at least one reflector in the set has access to sunlight. Using LRO LOLA data, a 3D model of Shackleton Crater and the surrounding terrain is created. Using a ray-tracing algorithm, synthetic imagery of this region is then generated using ephemeris data for the year 2020, from which an illumination model is generated. A placement optimization search algorithm is then developed, and results are shown for cases of 1, 2, and 3 reflectors over a search space focused on the western ridge of the crater. Results indicate that three reflectors strategically placed around the perimeter of the crater would be capable of providing energy to an area within the crater for at least 92.5% of the year if placed at surface level, or at least 96.8% if placed 100 meters above the surface.