Category Archives: Lunar Orbiters

Tuesday / 17 February 2015

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China Advancing Preparations For Chang’e-5 Sample Return Mission

Chang'eLM5

Next Generation Heavy-Lift Rocket, Long March-5, Engines Pass Successful Ground Test According To SASTIND; First Test Flight Planned For 2016; Booster Able To Lift 25 Metric Tons To LEO, 14 To GTO, Key Element For Lunar Sample Return Mission Chang’e-5; Service Module Of Chang’e-5 T1 Mission Currently In Orbit Around Moon, Still Providing China Lunar Exploration Program With Opportunities To Prepare For Sample Return Including Recent Experiment To Test Orbital Operational Capabilities

Image Credit: CNSA, CCTV

 

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 13-16 February 2015

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LRO Team Meets In Arizona As Orbiter Continues Providing Valuable Data

LRO0215update$

22nd LRO Project Science Working Group At Arizona State University This Week To Outline Research Priorities & Opportunities; NASA GSFC Recently Granted 2-Year Contract Extension To ASU For Management Of LRO / LROC Science & Flight Operations, Data Processing & Analysis; New Contract Goes Until 15 Mar 2017; No Operational Funds Were Requested For 2016 LRO Operations By Obama Administration; LRO Costs ~US$12.4M / Year; Strong Senior Review Rating, Support In Congress Indicate LRO Will Continue To Provide Valuable Data In Coming Years

Image Credit: NASA, ASU

Friday / 6 February 2015

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LRO Finds Most Lunar Hydrogen On Slopes Facing Moon South Pole

LRO Hydrogen

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Finds 23 Parts-Per-Million-By-Weight More Hydrogen On Crater Slopes In Southern Hemisphere (Starting Between 50-60° S Latitude) That Face Lunar South Pole Than On Equator-Facing Slopes Possibly Due To Lack Of Sunlight / Evaporation; LRO In 30 X 180-Km Altitude Orbit Passing Over Lunar South Pole With 21st Data Set Release Upcoming, Not Yet Funded For 2016 According To NASA Budget; Team Including Timothy McClanahan Of GSFC To Determine If N Hemisphere Has Same Pattern, & Effects Of Lunar Day / Night Cycle

Image Credit: NASA, Institute for Space Research, GSFC

Wednesday / 14 January 2015

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China Service Module Back In Lunar Orbit, Preparing For CE-5 Sample Return Mission

ChinaServiceMod0115

Chang’e-5 T1 Service Module Enters 127-Minute, 200-Km Lunar Orbit After 2-Month Stay At L2 Lagrange Point; China Officials Will Utilize The Probe To Conduct Long-Range Guidance Tests For Lunar Orbit Rendezvous & Docking In Feb & Mar; Orbiter Will Image Projected 2017 Chang’e-5 Landing Site With Its Dual-Resolution Camera In Early April

Image Credit: CNSA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 9-12 January 2015

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China Advancing Space Program With New Launch Center / ‘Moonport’

WenchangSLC0115

Launching Of Space Station Capsules & Crewed Moon Missions From New Wenchang Satellite Launch Center “Just A Matter Of Time” According To China Officials; 19-Degree Latitude Will Increase Carrying Capacity Of Rockets By 10% & Island Location Will Allow For Easier Transport / Delivery Of The Larger Rockets / Payloads Needed For Country To Achieve Next Phase Of Ambitious Lunar Exploration Program; Site Will Host Huge Long March 9 Rocket, Expected To Be Ready By 2030; Chang’e-5 T1 Service Module Currently Returning To Lunar Orbit To Collect Data In Preparation For 2017 Chang’e-5 Sample Return 

Image Credit: Digital Globe, astronomy.wiki.com

Friday / 9 January 2015

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Cube Quest Challenge Summit For
Missions Near & Beyond Moon

Cube Quest Challenge Summit 2015

2-Day Summit At Moffett Field CA Held 7 & 8 Jan Introducing US$5M NASA Program For Teams To Design, Build & Deliver Flight-Qualified, SmallSats Capable Of Advanced Operations Near & Beyond Moon; Winner(s) Qualify For Mission To Launch On Maiden Flight Of SLS ~Nov 2018; (L-R) Ames Research Center Director Pete Worden, Cube Quest Challenge Administrator James Cockrell, Planetary Protection Officer Cassie Conley & Others Discuss Mission & Engineering Details, Secondary Payloads, How Cube Quest Relates To Human Exploration

Image Credit: NASA, Ames Research Center

Friday / 19 December 2014

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GSLV Launch Opens Path To Moon & Solar System For India

ISROgslvChandrayaan

Successful Launch Of GSLV Mk-3 Will Change Destiny Of India Space Program According To ISRO Mission Director S Somnath; Heavy Payload Launch Capacity Will Allow Country To Continue Ambitious & Cost-Efficient Plans To Advance Solar System Robotic & Human Exploration, Beginning With Chandrayaan-2 Moon Orbiter / Lander / Rover Mission In 2016, Likely To Be Humanity’s 1st Mission To Next, Most Promising, New Frontier Of Human Expansion Into Cosmos –
Moon South Pole

Pictured (L-R): ISRO Chairman KS Radhakrishnan, Space Applications Center Director K Kumar

Image Credit: ISRO, NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 12-15 December 2014

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Successful Launch Of GSLV Mk-3 Will Advance India Moon Landing Plan

GSLVmk3Chandrayaan2

1st Flight Of 3-Stage GSLV Mk-3 Scheduled For 3rd Week Of December; Most Powerful To Date India Launch Vehicle Will Carry 3.65-Metric Ton Crew Module Atmospheric Re-Entry Experiment; Designed To Lift 4-Metric Ton Class Payload, The Rocket – With Lift Off Weight Of 630-Metric Tons – Is Needed To Complete 2016-2017 Chandrayaan-2 Orbiter / Lander / Rover Mission; Scientific Payloads Of Moon Mission Expected To Perform Mineralogical & Elemental Studies Of Lunar Surface; Moon South Pole Is Likely Destination Of Moon Lander

Image Credit: ISRO

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 5-8 December 2014

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International Space University LM1 Participation Inspires Students

ISUlm1

ISU Participation In Lunar Mission One (LM1) Exemplifies Potential Of Inspirational Education; 47 ISU MSc Students From Around World Carrying Out Preliminary Mission Design For Near-Term Lunar Orbiting Cubesat To Photograph Moon Surface – Specifically Including LM1 South Pole Landing Site; Satellite Will Send Pictures Back To Earth For Space Education / Outreach, & To Raise Global Awareness Of LM1 – Which Is Planned To Land & Drill To At Least 20m, Analyze 4.5B Year Old Rocks, & Analyze Viability Of Permanent Human Base At Moon South Pole

Image Credit: ISU, Lunar Mission One

Friday / 5 December 2014

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Earth-Moon Images As Taken By
Interplanetary Craft

Earth Moon Images

Images Of Earth-Moon / Cislunar System Dating Back To (L-R, T-B) Lunar Orbiter 1 Aug 1966 First View Of Earth From Moon, Apollo 8 Dec 1968 ‘Earthrise’, And Voyager 1 Sep 1977 First Picture Of Whole Earth & Moon In Single Frame Change Human Mindset / Relationship With Earth, Moon, Solar System, Galaxy; 2 Most Recent Pictures Of E-M System Taken By Chang’e-5 T1 Craft Oct 2014; E-M As Seen By Galileo 1992, Venus Express 2005, MESSENGER 2010, Juno 2011, Cassini 2013; Additional Images / Video Of E-M Expected From GLXP Competitors In 2015

Image Credit: CNSA, NASA, ESA, JHU, APL, Caltech, Malin Space Science Systems, Carnegie Institution of Washington