Updating Lunar Subsurface Geotechnical Properties Based Upon Nonlinear Winkler Modeling of Apollo and Lunokhod Measurements

Returning human and robotic explorers to the lunar surface has identified a need for a renewed understanding of lunar geotechnical properties related to landing on and exploring the lunar surface. We review fundamental lunar geotechnical properties such as bulk density, cohesion, friction angle and shear strength, and apply new data derived from Apollo and Lunokhod geotechnical measurements to update the understanding of lunar regolith behavior. The analysis derives a new, nonlinear relationship of lunar geotechnical properties as a function of depth.