The futurist, Alvin Topfler, claims in a recent book that if we were to send the space shuttle to the moon, we could load it with enough helium to power the USA for a year. Anybody know if that sounds right?
The Toflers are not right if they claim that about He3. It is astonishing how these folktales seem to live on long after they are debunked. Tofler is okay, though, even if his Waves are simplistic. Just right for China.
He thinks that there is harvestable He3, and assumes that if we had lots we’d be able to figure out helium fusion (He3 is much more “fusable” than hydrogen or tritium).
He assumes a landing/takeoff system to get a crew or robot down to the moon and back up with the He3.
Other than a dozen more unfounded assumptions, he’s dead on, once we have a fusion power plant burning He3 on Earth, a lunar trip could fuel it if there’s helium-3 available on the moon.