To establish a permanent settlement on the Moon, infrastructure will need to be built to protect humans from

radiation, temperature extremes and meteorite impact, and protect equipment such as solar panels, instruments

and rovers from abrasive lunar dust. Lunar regolith, the layer of loose, unconsolidated rocks and fine-grained

particles covering the surface of the Moon, is a dielectric material which can be efficiently heated to melting

temperature using microwave energy [1]. Sintered or melted regolith can then be used as feedstock to construct

landing pads, roadways and habitats, as well as more complex components using additive manufacturing.

Measurements of permittivity in lunar regolith simulants, up to their melting temperature, are crucial for

enhancing computational models and increasing the accuracy of numerical simulations related to the

microwave heating process. This will facilitate improved modelling for the design and optimisation of regolith

melting using microwave heating.

In this study, Microwave Dielectric Thermal Analysis (MW-DETA) [2] was employed for the first time to

measure the complex permittivity of lunar regolith simulants at temperatures of up to 1200 oC. The dual-mode

technique enables the simultaneous measurement of real and imaginary permittivity while the sample is heated

using 150W microwave power close to 2.43 GHz.