Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Return to the Moon
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Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and (LCROSS) Return to the Moon Thousands of New Images Show Mars in High Resolution!
During the LRO Commissioning Phase, the high-resolution Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) captured this 1-m pixel scale (angular resolution) two-image mosaic of the lunar south pole, (see "Image South Pole" below)which is located on the rim of the 19-km diameter Shackleton crater. At meter scales features such as boulders and ridges can be mapped, paving the way for future explorers. Right now we know little of the poles and much is to be learned from the data now being returned from LRO. The rim of Shackleton crater is a prime candidate for future human exploration due to its proximity to permanently shadowed regions and nearby peaks that are illuminated for much of the year. The permanent shadow may harbor cold-trapped volatiles deposited as comets and asteroids impacted the Moon over the past billion years or more. Highly illuminated peaks provide opportunities for solar power during most of the year for future human habitation.
Over the past year the Japanese Kaguya and Indian Chandrayaan spacecraft gave us our first high-resolution look at the lunar south pole and Shackleton crater and revealed an exceptionally deep and rugged interior for its size. Usually craters fill in with time as their walls slump and material from afar is thrown in by distant impacts. Since Shackleton crater is so deep and rough inside scientists might infer it is relatively young. However, much of the rim of Shackleton appears rounded and is peppered with smaller craters – indications of a relatively ancient age. Right now it is not clear if Shackleton crater is old or young. Many more LROC Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) images of this area will be obtained over the coming months as the south pole emerges from the shadows of winter and a more complete picture will appear.
The full NAC mosaic reveals a shelf on the southeast flank of the crater that is more than two kilometers across and perfectly suitable for a future landing. The extreme Sun angle gives the surface an exaggerated rough appearance, but if you look closely at this scale any area that is between the small craters might make a good landing site. The NAC can see details with ten times greater resolution than previous datasets allowing lunar geologists to map features at a human scale. Where should explorers land, and where should they visit once on the surface? Where can they find resources, and where can they sample a diversity of geologic materials? Over the coming months the whole area will be characterized in detail by all of the LRO instruments, and scientists will have the data to investigate these questions and more.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera was built by Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego, California, and is operated from the LROC Science Operations Center, part of the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.
Over the past year the Japanese Kaguya and Indian Chandrayaan spacecraft gave us our first high-resolution look at the lunar south pole and Shackleton crater and revealed an exceptionally deep and rugged interior for its size. Usually craters fill in with time as their walls slump and material from afar is thrown in by distant impacts. Since Shackleton crater is so deep and rough inside scientists might infer it is relatively young. However, much of the rim of Shackleton appears rounded and is peppered with smaller craters – indications of a relatively ancient age. Right now it is not clear if Shackleton crater is old or young. Many more LROC Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) images of this area will be obtained over the coming months as the south pole emerges from the shadows of winter and a more complete picture will appear.
The full NAC mosaic reveals a shelf on the southeast flank of the crater that is more than two kilometers across and perfectly suitable for a future landing. The extreme Sun angle gives the surface an exaggerated rough appearance, but if you look closely at this scale any area that is between the small craters might make a good landing site. The NAC can see details with ten times greater resolution than previous datasets allowing lunar geologists to map features at a human scale. Where should explorers land, and where should they visit once on the surface? Where can they find resources, and where can they sample a diversity of geologic materials? Over the coming months the whole area will be characterized in detail by all of the LRO instruments, and scientists will have the data to investigate these questions and more.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera was built by Malin Space Science Systems in San Diego, California, and is operated from the LROC Science Operations Center, part of the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.
Guy Webster 818-354-6278
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov
Lori Stiles 520-626-4402
University of Arizona, Tucson
lstiles@u.arizona.edu
PASADENA, Calif. -- Thousands of newly released images from more than 1,500
telescopic observations by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter show a wide range of
gullies, dunes, craters, geological layering and other features on the Red Planet.
The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on the orbiter
recorded these images from the month of April through early August of this year. The
camera team at the University of Arizona, Tucson, releases several featured images each
week and periodically releases much larger sets of new images, such as the batch posted
today.
The new images are available at http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/releases/sept_09.php .
Each full image from HiRISE covers a strip of Martian ground 6 kilometers (3.7 miles)
wide, about two to four times that long, showing details as small as 1 meter, or yard,
across.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has been studying Mars with an advanced set of
instruments since 2006. It has returned more data about the planet than all other past and
current missions to Mars combined. For more information about the mission, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/mro .
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena,
Calif., for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL is a division of the
California Institute of Technology, also in Pasadena. Lockheed Martin Space Systems,
Denver, is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The High
Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson,
and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo.
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov
Lori Stiles 520-626-4402
University of Arizona, Tucson
lstiles@u.arizona.edu
Image advisory: 2009-136 Sept. 2, 2009
Thousands of New Images Show Mars in High Resolution
PASADENA, Calif. -- Thousands of newly released images from more than 1,500
telescopic observations by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter show a wide range of
gullies, dunes, craters, geological layering and other features on the Red Planet.
The High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on the orbiter
recorded these images from the month of April through early August of this year. The
camera team at the University of Arizona, Tucson, releases several featured images each
week and periodically releases much larger sets of new images, such as the batch posted
today.
The new images are available at http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/releases/sept_09.php .
Each full image from HiRISE covers a strip of Martian ground 6 kilometers (3.7 miles)
wide, about two to four times that long, showing details as small as 1 meter, or yard,
across.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has been studying Mars with an advanced set of
instruments since 2006. It has returned more data about the planet than all other past and
current missions to Mars combined. For more information about the mission, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/mro .
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena,
Calif., for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL is a division of the
California Institute of Technology, also in Pasadena. Lockheed Martin Space Systems,
Denver, is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The High
Resolution Imaging Science Experiment is operated by the University of Arizona, Tucson,
and the instrument was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo.
- end -
July 17, 2009
Grey Hautaluoma
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0668
grey.hautaluoma@nasa.gov
Andy Freeberg
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-0746
andy.freeberg@nasa.gov
RELEASE: 09-168
NASA'S LRO SPACECRAFT GETS ITS FIRST LOOK AT APOLLO LANDING SITES
WASHINGTON -- NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, has
returned its first imagery of the Apollo moon landing sites. The
pictures show the Apollo missions' lunar module descent stages
sitting on the moon's surface, as long shadows from a low sun angle
make the modules' locations evident.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, or LROC, was able to image
five of the six Apollo sites, with the remaining Apollo 12 site
expected to be photographed in the coming weeks.
The satellite reached lunar orbit June 23 and captured the Apollo
sites between July 11 and 15. Though it had been expected that LRO
would be able to resolve the remnants of the Apollo mission, these
first images came before the spacecraft reached its final mapping
orbit. Future LROC images from these sites will have two to three
times greater resolution.
To view the new images, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/LRO
"The LROC team anxiously awaited each image," said LROC principal
investigator Mark Robinson of Arizona State University. "We were very
interested in getting our first peek at the lunar module descent
stages just for the thrill - and to see how well the cameras had come
into focus. Indeed, the images are fantastic and so is the focus."
Although these pictures provide a reminder of past NASA exploration,
LRO's primary focus is on paving the way for the future. By returning
detailed lunar data, the mission will help NASA identify safe landing
sites for future explorers, locate potential resources, describe the
moon's radiation environment and demonstrate new technologies.
"Not only do these images reveal the great accomplishments of Apollo,
they also show us that lunar exploration continues," said LRO project
scientist Richard Vondrak of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Md. "They demonstrate how LRO will be used to identify the
best destinations for the next journeys to the moon."
The spacecraft's current elliptical orbit resulted in image
resolutions that were slightly different for each site but were all
around four feet per pixel. Because the deck of the descent stage is
about 12 feet in diameter, the Apollo relics themselves fill an area
of about nine pixels. However, because the sun was low to the horizon
when the images were made, even subtle variations in topography
create long shadows. Standing slightly more than ten feet above the
surface, each Apollo descent stage creates a distinct shadow that
fills roughly 20 pixels.
The image of the Apollo 14 landing site had a particularly desirable
lighting condition that allowed visibility of additional details. The
Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package, a set of scientific
instruments placed by the astronauts at the landing site, is
discernable, as are the faint trails between the module and
instrument package left by the astronauts' footprints.
Launched on June 18, LRO carries seven scientific instruments, all of
which are currently undergoing calibration and testing prior to the
spacecraft reaching its primary mission orbit. The LROC instrument
comprises three cameras -- two high-resolution Narrow Angle Cameras
and one lower resolution Wide Angle Camera. LRO will be directed into
its primary mission orbit in August, a nearly-circular orbit about 31
miles above the lunar surface.
Goddard built and manages LRO, a NASA mission with international
participation from the Institute for Space Research in Moscow. Russia
provided the neutron detector aboard the spacecraft.
For more information about LRO's cameras and to view the first Apollo
landing site images, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/LRO
For additional information on LROC, visit:
http://lroc.sese.asu.edu
-end-
Grey Hautaluoma
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0668
grey.hautaluoma@nasa.gov
Andy Freeberg
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-0746
andy.freeberg@nasa.gov
RELEASE: 09-168
NASA'S LRO SPACECRAFT GETS ITS FIRST LOOK AT APOLLO LANDING SITES
WASHINGTON -- NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, has
returned its first imagery of the Apollo moon landing sites. The
pictures show the Apollo missions' lunar module descent stages
sitting on the moon's surface, as long shadows from a low sun angle
make the modules' locations evident.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, or LROC, was able to image
five of the six Apollo sites, with the remaining Apollo 12 site
expected to be photographed in the coming weeks.
The satellite reached lunar orbit June 23 and captured the Apollo
sites between July 11 and 15. Though it had been expected that LRO
would be able to resolve the remnants of the Apollo mission, these
first images came before the spacecraft reached its final mapping
orbit. Future LROC images from these sites will have two to three
times greater resolution.
To view the new images, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/LRO
"The LROC team anxiously awaited each image," said LROC principal
investigator Mark Robinson of Arizona State University. "We were very
interested in getting our first peek at the lunar module descent
stages just for the thrill - and to see how well the cameras had come
into focus. Indeed, the images are fantastic and so is the focus."
Although these pictures provide a reminder of past NASA exploration,
LRO's primary focus is on paving the way for the future. By returning
detailed lunar data, the mission will help NASA identify safe landing
sites for future explorers, locate potential resources, describe the
moon's radiation environment and demonstrate new technologies.
"Not only do these images reveal the great accomplishments of Apollo,
they also show us that lunar exploration continues," said LRO project
scientist Richard Vondrak of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Md. "They demonstrate how LRO will be used to identify the
best destinations for the next journeys to the moon."
The spacecraft's current elliptical orbit resulted in image
resolutions that were slightly different for each site but were all
around four feet per pixel. Because the deck of the descent stage is
about 12 feet in diameter, the Apollo relics themselves fill an area
of about nine pixels. However, because the sun was low to the horizon
when the images were made, even subtle variations in topography
create long shadows. Standing slightly more than ten feet above the
surface, each Apollo descent stage creates a distinct shadow that
fills roughly 20 pixels.
The image of the Apollo 14 landing site had a particularly desirable
lighting condition that allowed visibility of additional details. The
Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package, a set of scientific
instruments placed by the astronauts at the landing site, is
discernable, as are the faint trails between the module and
instrument package left by the astronauts' footprints.
Launched on June 18, LRO carries seven scientific instruments, all of
which are currently undergoing calibration and testing prior to the
spacecraft reaching its primary mission orbit. The LROC instrument
comprises three cameras -- two high-resolution Narrow Angle Cameras
and one lower resolution Wide Angle Camera. LRO will be directed into
its primary mission orbit in August, a nearly-circular orbit about 31
miles above the lunar surface.
Goddard built and manages LRO, a NASA mission with international
participation from the Institute for Space Research in Moscow. Russia
provided the neutron detector aboard the spacecraft.
For more information about LRO's cameras and to view the first Apollo
landing site images, visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/LRO
For additional information on LROC, visit:
http://lroc.sese.asu.edu
-end-
Five Things About LRO
06.08.09
If you have never heard of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), here are five quick things you should know:
- LRO is leading NASA’s way back to the moon.
- The primary objective of LRO is to conduct investigations preparing for future exploration of the moon. Specifically LRO will scout for safe and compelling lunar landing sites, locate potential resources with special attention to the possibility of water ice, and characterize the effects of prolonged exposure to the lunar radiation environment. In addition to its exploration mission, LRO will also return rich scientific data that will help us to better understand the moon’s topography and composition.
- The instrument payload of LRO consists of seven scientific instruments from partner institutions around the nation and globe, including one instrument contributed by the Institute for Space Research in Moscow. These instruments will return lunar imagery, topography, temperatures, and more.
- Launching along with LRO is the Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), a partner mission that will search for water ice on the moon by sending a SUV-sized rocket stage into the permanent shadows of a polar crater. LCROSS will fly into the plume of dust left by the impact and take measurements of its properties before also colliding with the lunar surface.
- In response to LRO’s “Send Your Name to the Moon” web site, the spacecraft carries a microchip with nearly 1.6 million names that were submitted by the public. To view a photo of the microchip containing the names as engineers prepare to install it on the spacecraft, click here.
WASHINGTON -- NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO, has returned its first imagery of the Apollo moon landing sites. The pictures show the Apollo missions' lunar module descent stages sitting on the moon's surface, as long shadows from a low sun angle make the modules' locations evident. The pictures used do not have modual location arrows, they may cover up an important item. Can you find the moduals and astronaut footpaths? Or maybe a rover?Click on an image for a larger picture.
" Below" Lunar South Pole (LRO 09/20/09) which is located on the rim of the 19-km diameter Shackleton crater. Click on the image for an up close look.
Above: Center, Apollo 11 lunar module, Eagle. Image width: 282 meters (about 925 ft.)
Above: Lunar South Pole (LRO 09/20/09) which is located on the rim of the 19-km diameter Shackleton crater. Click on the image for an up close look.
Above: Apollo 15 lunar module, Falcon. Image width: 384 meters (about 1,260 ft.)
(Below)On July 1st, we rotated the orbiter to place the +Z-axis down, so that we could test our optical instruments with minimal distortion due to gravity. This view shows the +X face, with the qualification battery in the upper left corner, CRaTER in the lower left, and the omni antenna boom on the right, with the omni antenna partially obscuring the view of the high-gain antenna.
Above: Apollo 16 lunar module, Orion.
Image width: 256 meters (about 840 ft.)
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has transmitted its first images since reaching the moon on June 23. The spacecraft's two cameras, collectively known as the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, or LROC, were activated June 30. The cameras are working well and have returned images of a region in the lunar highlands south of Mare Nubium (Sea of Clouds).
As the moon rotates beneath LRO, LROC gradually will build up photographic maps of the lunar surface.
"Our first images were taken along the moon's terminator -- the dividing line between day and night -- making us initially unsure of how they would turn out," said LROC Principal Investigator Mark Robinson of Arizona State University in Tempe. "Because of the deep shadowing, subtle topography is exaggerated, suggesting a craggy and inhospitable surface. In reality, the area is similar to the region where the Apollo 16 astronauts safely explored in 1972. While these are magnificent in their own right, the main message is that LROC is nearly ready to begin its mission."
Above: Apollo 17 lunar module, Challenger.
Image width: 359 meters (about 1,178 ft.)
ABOVE: Location First pictures returned by LRO
BELOW: First Images Returned by LRO
ABOVE: Second Image returned by LRO
BELOW: Location of two Images returned by LRO
