Versatility
Compared to most 3-season US tents, MoonLights have much more ripstop than usual. But compared to most EU and UK tents, they have much more net. Likewise the overlap of the rainfly and the coated sidewalls is between the two. It has ample overlap to keep out splashing rain but it doesn’t come all the way to the ground because that would make it unbearable when it’s hot. Temperature control and livability in a wide range of environments is what the MoonLight’s ripstop and netting combination is about.
There are three different regions on the MoonLights:
1) The side walls are the most important for keeping wind out when it’s cold and letting it in when it’s hot. That’s why the coated part's overlap with the rainfly is large and why the upper is made of ripstop with net windows that can be closed with zippers. In sandstorms this is a huge help, though admittedly it might not be a 100% solution for every storm. Still, TentHats are really effective and inexpensive.
2) The roof is all net because it makes such a huge difference cooling the tent when it’s hot - especially when the rainfly is off. When it’s cold, the net roof IS cooler than ripstop would be but it’s not a gigantic difference (like the sides being net would be).
3) The door panels have two windows each, both on the upper half of the panel and non-closable. This is because they’re well protected by large vestibules so covering them isn’t terribly important.
A couple of other features for temperature and humidity regulation:
• The vestibules can be configured to catch the wind or shade just one side of the tent
• Vents through the rainfly near the top of the tent (ML 2+, 3+ & 4+ also in the vestibule)
• That fast rainfly up/down feature (stargaze in the evening; fast and easy re-cover if a storm rolls in later)
• Generally light color: MUCH cooler in the sun.
The result is very good performance in all conditions. It sacrifices a little warmth when it's cold for a LOT of hot weather livability. Given the way the climate’s been acting, I also think a little more heat-worthiness may come in handy in the UK and EU in the future.
It might bear mentioning that when I was designing the MoonLights, I was very much thinking about backpacking in places like UK’s Lake District, Scotland, and in Norway and Chile as much as places like Utah, the Colorado Rockies or the Sierra. These are versatile tents.
And now we have a lightweight accessory that makes the MoonLights warmer for using them in "Shoulder seasons" – early Spring and Late Fall:
The TentHat
A ripstop cover for the net roof of MoonLight tents. They add about 10˚F of warmth.
