U.S. returning to the moon’s surface for the first time in over 50 years
This morning at 2:18 a.m, the first American commercial robotic launch to the Moon successfully lifted off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) rocket with Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative. The unmanned Peregrine is expected to land on the lunar surface February 23. Today’s launch marks the first attempt by the United States to make a moon landing in more than 50 years.
Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander is carrying NASA scientific payloads and payloads from other organizations around the world. These instruments will be critical in understanding the lunar surface for our future NASA Artemis missions to the Moon.
In total, Peregrine will be transporting 20 payloads to the lunar surface, five from NASA and 15 from other clients. Those other customers include science-based payloads from Mexico and the UK – plus the more controversial transportation of human remains, sparking opposition from the Navajo Nation – the largest Native Americans group in the U.S.
The group contends that allowing the remains to touch down on the lunar surface would be an affront to many Indigenous cultures, which regard the moon as sacred. Celestis offers to carry ashes to the moon for prices starting at more than $10,000, according to the company’s website. ~ CNN
The five NASA science and research payloads aboard the lander will help the agency better understand planetary processes and evolution, search for evidence of water and other resources, and support long-term, sustainable human exploration.
“The first CLPS launch has sent payloads on their way to the Moon – a giant leap for humanity as we prepare to return to the lunar surface for the first time in over half a century,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.
“These high-risk missions will not only conduct new science at the Moon, but they are supporting a growing commercial space economy while showing the strength of American technology and innovation. We have so much science to learn through CLPS missions that will help us better understand the evolution of our solar system and shape the future of human exploration for the Artemis Generation.”
For this CLPS flight, NASA research includes:
- Laser Retroreflector Array: A collection of approximately half-inch (1.25 cm.) retro-reflectors – a mirror used for measuring distance – mounted to the lander. This mirror reflects laser light from other orbiting and landing spacecrafts to precisely determine the lander’s position.
- Neutron Spectrometer System: This system will search for indicators of water near the lunar surface by detecting the presence of hydrogen-bearing materials at the landing site as well as determining bulk properties of the regolith there.
- Linear Energy Transfer Spectrometer: This radiation sensor will collect information about the lunar radiation environment and any solar events that might occur during the mission. The instrument relies on flight-proven hardware that flew in space on the Orion spacecraft’s inaugural uncrewed flight in 2014.
- Near InfraRed Volatiles Spectrometer System: This system will measure surface hydration and volatiles. It will also detect certain minerals using spectroscopy while mapping surface temperature and changes at the landing site.
- Peregrine Ion-Trap Mass Spectrometer: This instrument will study the thin layer of gases on the Moon’s surface, called the lunar exosphere, and any gases present after descent and landing and throughout the lunar day to understand the release and movement of volatiles. It was previously developed for ESA’s (European Space Agency) Rosetta mission.
When Peregrine lands on the Moon on Friday, February 23, it will spend approximately 10 days gathering valuable scientific data studying Earth’s nearest neighbor and helping pave the way for the first woman and first person of color to explore the Moon under Artemis.
For more on the Vulcan Centaur rocket launched from ULA’s Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force this morning, see the video below.
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(Source: NASA)
(Cover photo: Vulcan Moon Landing Mission Rocket Launch, Image credit: Twitter)
Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today
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