‘Streets on the moon’: lunar dust could be ‘melted’ to make solid roads

Overcoming this challenge is a priority for Nasa, which aims to establish a permanent lunar outpost. Photograph: Fabrizio Villa/Getty Images

The moon has no air, no water and an extreme 250-degree temperature range, but among the most vexing challenges for space agencies hoping to set up camp is the dust. It erodes space suits, clogs machinery, interferes with scientific instruments and makes moving around difficult.

Now scientists have come up with a potential solution, demonstrating that moon dust could be melted using a giant lens to create solid roads and landing areas.