The case for having a permanent base on the moon as a staging point for space exploration has been made many times over the years. Actually constructing a real lunar facility presents numerous significant logistical challenges, not least of which is the genuinely astronomical cost of sending things into space.

A team of researchers has unveiled a creative solution to one of space exploration’s biggest hurdles—how to generate power on the Moon. Now, a new study shows that “moonglass” can be fabricated from lunar dust and used to make solar panels more efficiently and cheaply than transporting them from Earth.

The same dirt that clings to astronauts' boots may one day keep their lights on. In a study published in Device, researchers created solar cells made out of simulated moon dust. The cells convert sunlight into energy efficiently,