tagged w/ Chandrayaan-1
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NASA announced today that the LCROSS mission (perhaps better known as 'when NASA bombed the moon') did in fact find water - in the form of ice - on the moon.
The satellite, known as Lcross (pronounced L-cross), slammed into a crater near the Moon’s south pole a month ago. The impact carved out a hole 60- to 100-feet wide and kicked up at least 24 gallons of water.
“We got more than just whiff,” said Peter H. Schultz, a professor of geological sciences at Brown University and a co-investigator of the mission. “We practically tasted it with the impact.”
My compatriot Rich in the UK points out a similar announcement made in September after an Indian moon mission. The different between the two missions seems to be that while the Indian mission Chandrayaan-1 found evidence of water through electromagnetic analysis, the LCROSS mission actually made physical contact with the stuff, allowing NASA scientists to state that water exists unequivocally and in large amounts.
Does this mean we're going to the moon? Maybe! Water already up there could provide an invaluable resource for exploratory missions. The Obama administration has called for a review of spending on manned space programs with possible cuts looming. However, the 2010 budget did include "$630 million in additional near-term funding for development of follow-on rockets and spacecraft needed for the agency's post-shuttle moon program". Big cuts could be in the works after that, but finding water on the moon might pump a little more life and funding back into the program.
Should we go to the moon? Let us know what you think on Current News.
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- Is college worth the high cost? - The Real RecoveryNASA announced today that the LCROSS mission (perhaps better known as 'when NASA... more
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NASA's radar onboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 Moon vehicle has detected additional evidence of ice on the moon.NASA's radar onboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 Moon vehicle has detected... more
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There appears to be, to the surprise of planetary scientists, water, water everywhere on the Moon, but perhaps not many drops for future astronauts to drink.
Data from three spacecraft indicate the widespread presence of water or hydroxyl, a molecule consisting of one hydrogen atom and one oxygen atom as opposed to the two hydrogen and one oxygen atoms that make up a water molecule. The discoveries are being published Thursday on the Web site of the journal Science.
“It’s so startling because it’s so pervasive,” said Lawrence A. Taylor of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, a co-author of one of the papers that analyzed data from a National Aeronautics and Space Administration instrument aboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 satellite. on the MoonThere appears to be, to the surprise of planetary scientists, water, water everywhere... more
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"It was a flawless operation," said SK Shivakumar, director of ISRO Telemetry's tracking and command network.
A principal objective is to look for Helium 3, an isotope which is very rare on earth but is sought to power nuclear fusion and could be a valuable source of energy in the future.
It is thought to be more plentiful on the moon, but still rare and very difficult to extract.
India launched Chandrayaan-1 on Oct 22, joining the Asian space race in the footsteps of rival China and reinforcing its claim to be considered a global power."It was a flawless operation," said SK Shivakumar, director of ISRO... more
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Kiri
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added this
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3 years ago
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Scientists have better maps of distant Mars than the moon where astronauts have walked. But India hopes to change that with its first lunar mission.
Chandrayaan-1 — which means "Moon Craft" in ancient Sanskrit — is scheduled to launch from the Sriharikota space center in southern India at 8:20 p.m. EDT Tuesday in a two-year mission aimed at laying the groundwork for further Indian space expeditions.
Chief among the mission's goals is mapping not only the surface of the moon, but what lies beneath. If the launch is successful, India will join what's shaping up as a 21st century space race with Chinese and Japanese crafts already in orbit around the moon.
The United States, which won the 1960s race to send men to the moon, won't jump in this race with its new lunar probe until next spring, but it is providing key mapping equipment for India's mission.Scientists have better maps of distant Mars than the moon where astronauts have... more
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