You can use lightpipes to direct natural light into base facilities, especially underground, or work sites.
Scientists have used parabolic mirrors to sinter regolith, and can achieve temps in excess of 10,000°
Sintered regolith is good for roads and other construction.
Mirrors on crater rim would focus sunlight on dome on crater floor, the heated water is collected by rovers.The sunlight also powers rovers and keeps them warm.
No information on how mirrors are deployed. My preferred method is lander with 3D printer and robotic arm printing a mast to which mirrors are attached, a mask of 10s metres should be possible in low gravity.
Checkout G Sowers twitter for more info.
What advantage would light pipes have over electric transmission lines from solar arrays?
What's the purpose of trying to sinter regolith? Would this be for construction purposes, or oxygen extraction?
would that kind of use of focused sunlight be best done directly on site on the ground, or could it be done from focused mirrors in orbit?
At least with the latter [in orbit] you could be sintering nearly all the time, with less infringement from the lunar night.
You might also be able to supply solar heating to keep equipment from freezing during the lunar night.
Hauling a 3D printer to do some short-term work wouldn't make sense
QuoteWhat advantage would light pipes have over electric transmission lines from solar arrays?Simplicity is one advantage. Electric transmission lines would require equipment to convert sunlight into electricity and condition that electricity, the lines themselves, as well as equipment to re-convert that electricity back into visible light. Light pipes are shiny metal tubes that direct raw sunlight. There's some basic info at wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_tube
Light transmission efficiency is greatest if the tube is short and straight. In longer, angled, or flexible tubes, part of the light intensity is lost. To minimize losses, a high reflectivity of the tube lining is crucial; manufacturers claim reflectivities of their materials, in the visible range, of up to almost 99.5 percent