Kelly Beatty has an update on the LCROSS findings over at Sky & Telescope. NASA scientists are still analyzing data and may announce some preliminary results (including the discovery of water) at the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group meeting in Houston on Nov. 16-19.

For now, let me tantalize you with a preliminary result from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which viewed the Centaur’s demise from nearly overhead and just 48 miles (76 km) up. An instrument dubbed the Lyman-Alpha Mapping Project (LAMP) probed the ultraviolet spectrum of the impact plume after it had risen high enough to be projected against black space above the lunar limb.

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NASA MISSION UPDATE

NASA’s Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was a smashing success, returning tantalizing data about the Centaur impact before the spacecraft itself impacted the surface of the moon.

Last week, plunging headlong into Cabeus crater, the nine LCROSS instruments successfully captured each phase of the impact sequence: the impact flash, the ejecta plume, and the creation of the Centaur crater.

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Paul Spudis, Senior Staff Scientist at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, doesn’t think much of the recently concluded LCROSS mission. In a essay titled, “LCROSS: Mission to HYPErspace,” he outlines its scientific shortcomings: (more…)

NASA MISSION UPDATE

NASA’s Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, created twin impacts on the moon’s surface early Friday in a search for water ice. Scientists will analyze data from the spacecraft’s instruments to assess whether water ice is present.

The satellite traveled 5.6 million miles during an historic 113-day mission that ended in the Cabeus crater, a permanently shadowed region near the moon’s south pole. The spacecraft was launched June 18 as a companion mission to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

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It’s 2:30 a.m. here at NASA Ames. All looks good for an impact on the moon in two hours time.

A crowd out on the parade grounds is watching the end of “October Sky,” the Homer Hickham biopic, which is being projected on a big screen. It’s the third and final film of the night, following “Fly Me to the Moon” and “The Dish.”

Kenji Williams is scheduled to do a musical performance at 2:45. I’m not sure if it’s going to be live or on video. I’ll see if I can post some video of it.

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‘Tis was the night before LCROSS, and all through the lawn…

…sat excited people who will be up til the dawn.

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Animation of NASA’s LCROSS spacecraft from launch to its collision with the moon on Friday morning.

Not in the Bay Area?
Find an event near year with NASA’s handy dandy national map.

NASA AMES PRESS RELEASE

NASA Ames Research Center (Moffett Field, CA) will be hosting an all-night event (October 8 and 9) featuring a real-time moment in space exploration as the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) impacts the moon to search for water ice and vapor. The LCROSS Impact event will be held outdoors at NASA Ames Research Center from 5:30 p.m. Thursday, October 8 through 6:30 a.m. Friday, October 9, with impact occurring at 4:30 a.m. October 9. The special night of programming includes guest speakers (7:30-9:00 p.m.), feature films (9:30 p.m. – 2:30 a.m. – reserved tickets required), a special live performance by Kenji Williams (2:30 a.m.), and live mission coverage on a large, outdoor screen (3:15-5:00 a.m.).

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NASA will broadcast the crash of LCROSS onto the moon on Friday morning.

For the first time in history, a Centaur upper stage will destroy itself without completely ruining a multi-million dollar mission.

NASA MISSION UPDATE

“Always the bridesmaid, never the bride,” as the old lament goes. For almost 50 years, the Centaur high-energy upper stage rocket has been the behind-the-scenes workhorse of NASA’s exploration of space. Teamed with the Atlas and Titan booster rockets, Centaurs have sent probes to the each of our solar systems planets and beyond. Now, Centaur gets its “15 minutes” of fame.

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