Category Archives: Lunar Orbiters

Friday / 22 August 2014

Posted on by

CubeSat Technologies Advancing Toward Interplanetary Missions

Lunar SS Cubesats

CubeSat R&D Efforts For Moon, Mars, Solar System Missions Expected To Come To Fruition Soon With Initiatives Including Vermont Tech 10x10x30cm Mooncraft, JPL Dual Spacecraft INSPIRE (Interplanetary NanoSpacecraft Pathfinder In Relevant Environment), JPL Lunar Flashlight With 80m² Solar Sail; Greatest Benefit Is Low Cost To Produce & Launch With High Science Capabilities; Could Navigate Through Planetary Rings, Release PicoSats, Land On Surface; US$50K Vermont Lunar CubeSat Currently In LEO Testing Navigation Components For Moon Mission

Pictured: CubeSat Inventors Bob Twiggs (L) & Jordi Puig-Suari

Image Credit: NASA, JPL, ed-sat.com, Vermont Tech

Tuesday / 19 August 2014

Posted on by

Stimulating Lunar Enterprise With Earth-Orbital Launch Platform

ColubiaMoonLauncher0814

Revisiting 1996 Proposal To Utilize Space Shuttle Columbia, With Its Extended-Duration Orbiter Modifications, As A Joint NASA / Private Sector Launch Platform For Rocket Stages Bearing Small Lunar Landers Which Would Then Deliver Teleoperated Micro-Robots; Current / Future Orbiter Vehicles Could Potentially Be Used For Such Purposes Helping To “Ignite A Billion Dollar, Sustained Enterprise On Moon” As Proposal Author Carey McCleskey Of NASA JSC Vehicle Engineering Directorate Originally Suggested

Image Credit: NASA, Eberhard Marx

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 8-11 August 2014

Posted on by

Decision On LRO Fate May Be Released Next Week

LRO0814

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Set To Complete First Extended Mission In Sep 2014, No Funding For Second Extended Mission Has Yet Been Granted, Will Likely Depend On Results Of Senior Review Of NASA Planetary Science Missions; Reports Indicate Senior Review Is Complete & Results Should Be Released Next Week; LRO Competing Against Other Missions Such As Cassini & Mars Opportunity Rover; Many Argue Using Existing Assets Such As LRO To Achieve New Discovery-Class Science Objectives Represents Highest Possible Return; The Lunar Orbiter Would Require Only US$8.1M For 2015 Operations

Pictured: LRO Project Scientist Richard Vondrak

Image Credit: NASA

Wednesday / 6 August 2014

Posted on by

Russia Lunar Aspirations Persist
Though Missions Likely Delayed

RussiaMoonPlan0814

Director Of Space Research Institute IKI Lev Zeleny Confirms All Approved Lunar Missions Remain On Table; Domino Effect Of Mission Delays Pushes Luna-Glob / Luna-25 Mission To Test Landing Techniques From 2016 To 2019, Luna-Glob 2 / Lunar-26 Orbiter Mission Now Expected 2021, Luna-Resurs / Luna-27 Lander Mission With Drilling System & Scientific Payloads Pushed Back To 2023; Russia Also Working On ~US$2.8B-Project To Put Humans On Moon By 2031

Image Credit: Russiaspaceweb.com, RIA Novosti

Thursday / 31 July 2014

Posted on by

SLS Maiden Voyage To Deliver Cubesats To Moon

FlashlightSLS0714

11 Cubesats Will Be Delivered To Cislunar Space On First Uncrewed Mission Of SLS Rocket / Orion Capsule In Late 2017; 3 Missions Have Already Been Selected Including Lunar Flashlight; Led By Barbara Cohen Of NASA Marshall SFC; Mission Will Utilize 80m² Solar Sail To Navigate Into A Highly Elliptical Lunar Polar Orbit That Passes Near Moon South Pole, Solar Sail Will Then Be Redirected To Shine 50kW Of Sunlight Into Shaded Craters While On-Board Spectrometer Measures Surface Reflection & Composition; Data Will Identify Sites With Ample Volatiles Near Surface Ideal For More Expansive Lander / Rover / Human Missions

Image Credit: NASA, Rob Staehle

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 20-23 June 2014

Posted on by

LRO Enters 6th Year In Good Health, Uncertain Future

LROfuture0614

23 June Will Mark 5 Years In Lunar Orbit For LRO; All 7 Instruments Continue To Provide Valuable Scientific Moon Data & Craft Has Generous Reserve Of Fuel; Funding For 2-Year Mission Extension Dependent On Results Of Ongoing NASA Biannual Senior Review Of Ongoing Missions, Results Expected This Month; Mission Extension Would Cost ~US$8M Annually, Continued Operations Could Be Invaluable To Future Human / Robotic Moon Missions

Image Credit: NASA

Weekend Edition
Fri-Mon / 6-9 June 2014

Posted on by

LRO Has More Work To Do After 5 Productive Years

LROsymphony

With A Generous Reserve Of Fuel And 7 Instruments Performing “Like A Finely Tuned Symphony” LRO Still A Valuable Tool For Planetary Science / Exploration; Preliminary Goals For Proposed 2nd Extended Mission Include: Evaluate Nature Of Thermophysical Differences Between Permanently Shaded Regions & Rest Of Moon, Complete Mapping (0.5-2m / Pixel) Of Non-Polar Regions, Continue Longitudinal Studies Of Changes On Moon (Impact Cratering Rate, etc), Increase Scientific Productivity Of Future Lunar Surface Missions; Pictured R-L: LRO Project Scientist Richard Vondrak & Project Manager Craig Tooley

Image Credit: NASA

Wednesday / 28 May 2014

Posted on by

LRO Celebrates Moon As Art For 5th Anniversary

LROmoonArt

Public Invited By NASA To Select Cover Image For ‘The Moon As Art’ LRO Image Collection, Voting Open Until 6 June; Finalists: Starry Night, Clerke Crater, Diviner North Pole, Linne Crater & Tycho Central Peak; Full Collection Of 24 Images Will Be Released On 18 June, 5th Anniversary Of LRO Launch; The Future Of LRO Remains Uncertain, Mission Could End Sep 2014 Or Be Extended 2 More Years; Fate Will Likely Be Determined By Results Of Biennial NASA Senior Review Expected In June 

Image Credit: NASA

Friday / 23 May 2014

Posted on by

LADEE Lunar Laser Communication Demonstration Performance To Be Detailed

LLCD 2014

New Comprehensive Overview Of LLCD To Be Presented At CLEO 2014 Conference 8-13 June By Team From MIT Lincoln Laboratory (Developer Of Primary Lunar Laser Ground Terminal); Will Describe Techniques To Achieve Error-Free Performance Over ~400,000km Distance / Atmospheric Disturbances; Transmitted Data From Earth To Moon At 19.44 Megabits Per Second – Beat Previous Record By Factor Of 4,800; Significant For Moon & Beyond Missions, Real-Time Communication & 3-D HD Video

Image Credit: NASA

Tuesday / 29 April 2014

Posted on by

ISEE-3 Reboot Project To Include Moon Flyby

ISEE-3_0414

LOIRP Team Leaders Dennis Wingo (T) & Keith Cowing (B) Heading Up Crowdfunding Project To Reactivate Comet-Chasing Probe ISEE-3; Team Has Already Raised Over 40% Of The US$125,000 Goal, Needs To Have Funds / Contact Probe By Mid-May, Complete Orbit Change Maneuvers No Later Than Mid-June 2014, Those Maneuvers Will Include Flyby Of Moon At 50-Km Altitude; If Successful, 479-Kg Probe Will Be Directed To Study A Nearby Comet, All New Data From 13 Craft Instruments Will Be Crowdsourced 

Image Credit: Rockethub.com, SpaceRef, Crowdfunder.com