9-Day Field Tests Of NASA-CSA Lunar Rover Now Underway At Lunar Analog Environment Of Mauna Kea, Hawaii; RESOLVE Project Demonstrating How Future Explorers Could Extract Water / Resources From Lunar Soil; CSA Contributing Artemis Junior Terrestrial Rover, Versatile Drill, Avionics Suite; NASA Contributing Resource Extraction Payload; Media Day On 19 July
Image Credit: NASA
International Lunar Observatory Association Advancing Cooperative Program With National Astronomical Observatories Of China To Conduct Galaxy Astronomical Imaging For Global 21st Century Education Using Lunar Telescope Of Chang’e-3 (2013) Moon Lander; In Exchange NAOC Will Conduct Research With ILO-X Precursor Mission (NET 2014) & ILO-1 Polar Mission (NET 2015) Observatories
Image Credit: ILOA, NAOC
Planned To Launch In Mid 2010s, SELENE-2 Includes Lander, Rover, Communication Relay Orbiter; Top Science Priority To Clarify Process Of Magma Ocean During Early Stage Of Planetary Evolution, & Seismic Observation To Understand Internal Structure Of Moon; JAXA Considering Possibility Of Launching 2 Landers, Polar & Equatorial; SELENE-X Sample Return / Logistics Demonstrator To Follow; Pictured: SELENE-2 Director Prof Sho Sasaki
Image Credit: JAXA
JAXA Sees Moon As Next Destination For Human Exploration; Associate Executive Director Yuichi Yamaura Confirms Japan’s Lunar Aspirations At Recent GLEX 2012 Conference; Japan Previously Released Plan For US$2.2B Robotic Base Near Moon South Pole By 2020 As Precursor To Human Habitation; JAXA Has Plans For Polar Lander, In-Situ Lunar Orientation Measurement (ILOM), Equiped With 20cm Optical Telescope
Image Credit: JAXA
US$250M Mission With U-Shaped Canada Rover, Canada Excavation Tools, US Science Instruments Destined For Moon South Pole; KSC In Situ Utilization Project Manager William Larson Says RESOLVE (Regolith & Environment Science & Oxygen & Lunar Volatile Extraction) Is “Next Logical Step For Lunar Exploration”; Prototype To Be Tested On Mauna Kea HI In July
Image Credit: NASA
3rd Generation Design Of RESOLVE Experiment Set For Mission Simulation Field Test In July 2012 On Slopes Of Mauna Kea, Hawai`i; Next Step In Understanding Available Resources At Lunar Poles; NASA / CSA RESOLVE Payload On Lunar Rover Will Perform 3-5 Sample Collections At Depth Of 1m, Over Area Of Several Square Km During 5-7 Day Mission To Map Horizontal Distribution Of Hydrogen Bearing Volatiles
Image Credit: NASA, JAXA
Columbia Astrophysicist Arlin Crotts (Inset) Says Russia Secured Evidence Of Water In 1976, Ignored By West; Luna 24 Mission Drilled 2m Into Moon Surface, Returned 300g Of Rock, Found It To Be 0.1% Water; Paul Spudis Says Water Level Seems High For Mid-Latitudes, Analysis Of Samples Needs to Be Confirmed / Cross-Checked; Discovery Further Support Of In-Situ Water Manufacturing On Moon For Future Exploration
Image Credit: NASA, Columbia University
Continued Success / Progress Of India Moon Program Critical For Humanity’s Vital Expansion Into Solar System / Galaxy; Program Might Benefit From Reconsideration; GSLV Failures Have Put Ambitious Chandrayaan-2 Mission On Hold; Reconfigured Missions With A 2nd Orbiter And / Or Small Scale Lander / Rover Launched By Reliable PSLV Rocket Would Put Country Back On Track As ISRO Qualifies GSLV & Prepares For More Advanced Missions
Image Credit: ISRO, NASA
Autonomous Navigation, Ultra-Fast Graphical Processing Units Among Technologies GLXP Team Part-Time Scientists Hope To Advance With Lunar Mission NET 2014; Landing Vehicle & ‘Asimov’ Rover To Touch Down Near Apollo 17 Site; Autonomous Navigation System Developed In Tandem With German Aerospace Center Uses Stereo Camera To Generate 2.5-Dimensional Model Of Surroundings
Image Credit: cnet.com, Part-Time Scientists
Team Displays Early Prototypes Of Descent Vehicle & Rover At Bay Area Maker Faire In CA; Phoenicia Planning To Do Much Development Of Flight Hardware In-House; Has Plans For 2014 Launch As Secondary Payload With SpaceX; Already Raised Over US$5M For Lunar South Pole Mission; Currently Listed In 3rd Place In Unofficial Evadot Scorecard; Potential Collaborators On Human Moon Mission
Image Credit: Team Phoenicia, pcworld.com