Comprehensive assessment of photovoltaic designs and power generation potential at the Lunar South Pole

The Lunar South Pole offers promising opportunities for energy generation due to unique solar distribution and regions with near-continuous sunlight. However, complex spatiotemporal solar variations, with prolonged nighttime, present challenges for designing energy systems of research stations. This study integrates digital elevation models with photovoltaic (PV) system design to select the PV system and analyze power generation potential at the South Pole. The performance of various PV layouts is analyzed at representative sites. A comprehensive assessment of PV power generation characteristics is conducted, estimating solar energy potential. The results display that the maximum PV power generation on the surface reach 3881 kWh/m2, with areas exhibiting ‘outstanding’ generation potential (exceeding 3000 kWh/m2) and ‘very short’ dormant times (less than 3 days) expanding above ground. Elevating PV panels from 0 to 10 m increases the area with ‘outstanding’ potential from 2.7 × 105 m2 to 4.2 × 106 m2 and the area with ‘very short’ dormant times from 1.4 × 104 m2 to 2.2 × 105 m2. Preliminary assessments indicate PV systems with 36 % efficiency could meet the maximum power demand of 200 GW above 87.5°S, accounting for mutual shading. This study demonstrates the potential of PV systems and offers recommendations for selecting and constructing energy systems for Lunar missions.