US$504-Million LRO Mission, Costing US$12.4M To Operate Annually, Will Achieve 6 Years In Lunar Orbit This Jun; Extension Of Operations Into 2016 Still In Question; Data Set 22 – With Data Collected From Dec 2014 To Mar 2015 – Expected In Jun 2015; Slides From Recent LRO Data Users Workshop Now Available; Registration For Jul 2015 Lunar Workshops For Educators Still Open
Image Credit: NASA
5th International Workshop On Lunar Surface Applications 14-17 April In Cocoa Beach Florida Will Provide Overview Of Lunar Surface Missions That Are In Development & Opportunities They Present For Scientists & Space Entrepreneurs; Representatives From NASA Lunar Catalyst Program Participants Moon Express, Astrobotic, Masten Will Present; Workshop Will Also Feature In Depth Look At Engineering & Science Of Lunar Polar ISRU & NASA Lunar Resource Prospector Mission
Image Credit: Flexure Engineering, NASA, Moon Express, Masten
Total Lunar Eclipse 4 Mins 43 Secs Starting 01:58 HST 4 April Will Be Shortest Of 21st Century & Shortest Since 1529; NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter To Study Lunar Surface Temperature Changes; China Chang’e-3 At Sinus Iridum / Mare Imbrium May Observe Lunar Terminator & Dust Dynamics, Take Images Along With Chang’e-5-T1 In Moon Orbit; NASA Media Teleconference & Live Feed Of Eclipse From Griffith Observatory In CA Available; Next Total Eclipse 28 Sep To Last 1 Hr 12 Mins
Image Credit: NASA, LRO, CNSA, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Phil Hart
LADEE Results Indicate Tail Of Nanoscale Particles Trailing Moon, Likely Expelled By Asteroid Impact, <0.001g / Square Meter; LADEE Spectrometer PI Says Phenomenon Could Offer New Way To Study Surface Of Airless Planetary Bodies, “Collect Their Tails Rather Than Landing On Them”; Moon RIDERS Educational Project Testing System To Remove Lunar Dust From Moon Lander Equipment Using High Voltage Square Waves Being Tested At NASA Ames; Project Is Collaboration Of Hawai`i High Schools, NASA, GLXP Teams, PISCES
Image Credit: NASA, kealakeherobotics.org
Moon Ice Concentrations Symmetrically Centered 5.5° From Lunar Poles; Research Team Including Matthew Siegler Of Planetary Science Institute Suggests This Indicates Moon Experienced Ancient Polar Shift Caused By 3.5B-Year Old Lunar Hot Spot At Oceanus Procellarum; If Theory Is Accurate Lunar Ice May Be Nearly As Ancient As Moon Itself, Potentially Locked Up As Hydrated Minerals In Rocks And / Or Protected By Insulated Layer Of Regolith; Team Relied On Data From NASA Lunar Prospector Mission
Image Credit: NASA, UCLA
Final Day Of 46th LPSC At The Woodlands TX Focuses On “Early Lunar Evolution: Accretion To Crustal Formation & More”, “Later Lunar Evolution: How Old Is Old?”, “Impact Craters On Mars & The Moon”; New Map Of Moon, Produced By Jack Wilson & Team At Durham University, Charts Thorium Spread 70,000km2 From Volcanic Eruption 3.5B Years Ago; Study By David Blair & Colleagues At Purdue University Concludes Moon Lava Tubes Of 1km+ Would Be Structurally Sound For Permanent Bases, Tunnels Are Expected To Be Larger On Moon Than On Earth Due To Lower Gravity
Image Credit: LPSC, LPI, NASA, Durham University, GSFC, ASU, LRO
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Continues To Provide Valuable Data From Lunar Orbit; Probe Has Acquired 10,000 Before & After Image Pairs Of Lunar Surface Since It Began Mapping Moon In Summer 2009; 225 New Impact Craters Ranging From 1.5m – 43m Identified; Recent Discovery Of 18.8m Crater From March 17, 2013 Impact Provided Valuable Opportunity To Test Impact Models & Study Top Meter Of Regolith
Image Credit: NASA
Africa2Moon Organizers Seeking To Identify Future Scientific Mission Objectives, Garner Increased Attention & Participation In Moon Mission Through Call For Proposals; Call Is Open To Individuals & Entities Worldwide, Though At Least Half Of Each Teams’ Members Must Be Based In Africa; Proposals Can Address Any Question Of Space Or Lunar Science, Achievable With Current Skills, Capabilities, Resources In Africa; Submissions Due By 30 Jun; Pictured: Africa2Moon Mission Administrator Peter Martinez
Image Credit: Africa2Moon, NASA
46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference Held On 16-20 March At The Woodlands, Texas; Event Begins With Session On Results From Recent Lunar Missions LADEE, GRAIL & Chang’e-3; Highlighted Concurrent Events Include LRO Data Users Workshop On 15 Mar, NextGen Lunar Scientists And Engineers Workshop, Lunar Cubes Mission Opportunities Workshop, Lunar Exploration Analysis Group (LEAG) Town Hall; Pictured: Conference Co-Chairs Steve Mackwell Of LPI, Eileen Stansbery Of NASA JSC
Image Credit: NASA, LPI, CNSA
Experts In Moon Exploration Such As (R-L) James Head, Carle Pieters, Maria Zuber & David Scott Will Gather In The Woodlands, Texas On 14-15 March For Brown University / Vernadsky Institute Microsymposium 56 The Crust Of The Moon: Insights Into Early Planetary Processes; Data & Discoveries From Recent Missions Chang’e-1 & 2, Chandrayaan-1, Kaguya, LRO & GRAIL Will Be Evaluated Identifying How They Improved Understanding Of Composition, Diversity, Layering, Thickness Of Lunar Crust; Key Outstanding Scientific Questions And Proposals To Address Those Questions Will Also Be Explored
Image Credit: brown.edu, mit.edu, ju.edu, NASA