China Robotic Lunar Lander Mission Chang’e-3 Passes Thermal Dynamic Trials, Testing Key Mechanical Performance Of The Lander Prior To Trial Run Of Propulsion System; New Superconducting Receiver Developed By 16th Research Institute, China Electronic Corporation Installed In New Deep Space Monitor And Ground Control Station; Receiver Expected To Also Support Future Mars Mission
Image Credit: CNSA, CLEP
NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter LAMP (Lyman Alpha Mapping Project) Spectrometer Sensed Noble Gas Helium For The First Time, Say Scientists From SWRI; Principal Investigator Alan Stern Points To Bigger Question Of Whether Helium Comes From Interior Source Such As Radioactive Decay Or From Solar Wind; 1972 Apollo 17 LACE (Lunar Atmosphere Composition Experiment) In Situ Measurements Agree With Findings / Point To Future Search For Argon
Image Credit: NASA, NASA Goddard/Debbie McCallum
SpaceIL co-Founder Yonatan Winetraub Says Incentive Of Inspiring This Generation Of Israeli & Jewish Children With The “Apollo Effect” Is Just As Important As Winning GLXP; Team Of 10 Engineers & Scientists Helped By 170 Volunteers To Create 35kg Spacecraft; Anonymous Donor Guarantees Over US$807K Funding; Israel Aerospace Industries, Technion & Weizmann Institute Providing Facilities / Assistance; 2015 Launch Planned
Image Credit: SpaceIL
NASA’s Beyond Earth Orbit (BEO) Exploration Era Debuts SLS & Orion / Looks To A Human Return To The Moon; 2017 EM-1 On Lunar Return Class Orion Validates Critical Mission Elements / Human Rating In Lunar Orbit; 2021 EM-2 Adds Crew For 3-4 Days In Lunar Orbit; 2022 EM-3 To Begin Construction Of Exploration Gateway Enabling NEA Missions / Possible Lunar Surface Missions
Image Credit: NASA
China Exhibited New Radio Telescope Sunday Located At The Foot Of Sheshan Mountain In Shanghai; 4th Largest In World; Will Do Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI); Able To Receive 8 Frequency Bands And Communicate With Earth Satellites, Lunar & Deep Space Probes; Chang’e-2 Chief Designer Wu Weiren Hopes It Will Be Operational In Time To Support Upcoming Lunar Mission
ESA To Decide By End Of 2012 If 2.8 Metric Ton Herschel Telescope Will Crash Into Lunar Surface In Search Of Permafrost; $1.4B Infrared Astronomy Mission Ends March 2013 Due To Depletion Of Cryogenic Superfluid Helium; Spacecraft Currently At L2; Earliest Arrival At Moon Would Be June 2013; Alternate Plan To Place In Solar Orbit, Away From Earth For 100s Of Years
Image Credit: ESA, NASA
Lunar Atmosphere And Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) Nears Testing As Final Instrument Installed At NASA Ames Research Center; Ultraviolet & Visible Light Spectrometer (UVS) Analyzes Light Signatures; Neutral Mass Spectrometer (NMS) Tracks Atmospheric Variations In Multiple Environments; Lunar Dust Experiment (LDEX) Collects / Analyzes Particles Aloft; Tech Demo Of Laser Communications Also Aboard; Set For Aug 2013 Launch, Project Scientist Rick Elphic States, “A Mission Like LADEE Has Been Needed Since Apollo…”
Image Credit: NASA
Penn State Combines Total Interdisciplinary Expertise In Bid To Win GLXP; Team Includes Students, Faculty, Applied Research Laboratory Engineers; Leader Michael Paul Has Significant NASA Experience Including MESSENGER Systems Engineer / Points Out “…We’ll Be The First University In History That Explores Another Body In Space.”; Lunar Lion Spacecraft Combines Lander / Rover Requirements; January 2014 Launch To 5.5 Day Cruise To Moon With Powered Descent / Lift-Off From Lunar Surface For 500m Flight / Powered Descent
Image Credit: Penn State Lunar Lions, GLXP
Russia Federal Space Agency Announces Two Missions To The Moon: Luna-Globe Slated For 2015 Launch To Orbit Moon And Lunar-Resource Slated For 2017-8 Launch To Land On Lunar Surface; Luna-Globe Design Based On 2011 Lost Mars Craft Fobos-Grunt; Lunar-Resource Lander Will Study Soil Of Moon’s Southern Hemisphere Says Developer NPO Lavochkin; Next Mars Probe Attempt Not Till 2025 States Space Agency Chief Vladimir Popovkin
Image Credit: Roscosmos, NPO Lavochkin
ESA Preliminary System Requirement Review Puts €500M Price On 6 Month Mission To Place Rover / Other Experiments At Moon’s South Pole; Astrium Lunar Lander Study Phase B1 Major Results Include Precision Autonomous Soft Landing Test Results From TRON (Testbed For Robotic Optical Navigation) & LAMA (Landing And Mobility Test Facility); Nov ESA Ministerial Conference Decides Whether To Proceed With Study Phase B2 Leading To Preliminary Design Review
Image Credit: Astrium, ESA