SMART-1 - ESA lunar orbiter

Palomar · 2004-11-22 06:48:38

http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.htm … 73]SMART-1 completes 1st lunar orbit

*On Nov 19. Also achieved its 2nd perilune.

--Cindy

::EDIT::

Another important event in the near future is a fairly long eclipse caused by the satellite crossing the Moon's umbra for 1 hour and 50 minutes on 22 November starting at 08:52 UTC. The spacecraft has proved, during the transfer orbit, to be able to withstand even longer eclipses. However, since the batteries have not been discharged for that long since many months, the ESOC flight control team and the ESTEC and industry specialists will closely follow the event.

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2004-11-25 10:16:48

Oh this is kind of cool.
http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/object … 7]Electric Spacecraft Propulsion
Anyway the article you posted Cindy said electric propulsion uses a magnetic field to accelerate the ions and I thought that current electric propulsion used eclectic systems. Maybe several methods have been tried. I am not sure which method smart 1 uses.

nice info on the ion engine

Palomar · 2004-12-17 07:43:35

*Did this mission crash on the dark side of the Moon or something? ???

I can't find any updated information at the ESA homepage for this mission. Latest update is reflected in this thread. :-\ No updates at other space/astronomy-related web sites either, but I'd expect to find them at the ESA web site anyway.

SMART-1 is http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/l … ]mentioned in this recent article, which mostly pertains to non-ESA plans and ambitions.

Rather surprised at all the quietness. Is there simply nothing to report? At least a blurb to that effect would be appreciated.

--Cindy

SpaceNut · 2004-12-17 09:37:47

Mission status page it does seem very quite indeed but not much to speak of since it is mostly an imaging probe.

Palomar · 2004-12-17 09:42:52

...but not much to speak of since it is mostly an imaging probe.

*Yeah...but where are the images? If there are none currently, when can we expect (approximately) the first image or images to roll in?

There's been n-o-t-h-i-n-g (in any respect) coming "across the wire" about SMART-1 for nearly a month now, except for what you posted above (and where in tarnation did you find that?).

Perhaps ESA simply isn't that aggressive or pro-active(?).

::sigh:: Just wondering aloud.

--Cindy

P.S.: I do check at least 8 space/astronomy web sites every day. Maybe a dozen. :-\ Oh well.

djellison · 2004-12-17 10:11:02

Perhaps ESA simply isn't that aggressive or pro-active(?).

11 1/2 months in orbit - and not a SINGLE image at the 2m resolution from the camera on board Mars Express.

ESA is just very VERY bad at publicity

Doug

SpaceNut · 2004-12-17 11:22:22

Just a few more tid bits:
On this page you will find the article Moon says "Cheese" for lunar mini-camera

12 November 2004 Since its launch in September 2003, the small but remarkable SMART-1 satellite has been silently spiralling its way to the Moon. In mid November, it will be captured by lunar gravity and next January it will reach its final orbit and start science observations. This week EuroNews talks to the SMART-1 AMIE camera team.

Spacedaily article

Once it enters into a near-polar orbit around the Moon in January 2005, SMART-1 will also become a science platform for lunar observation. SMART-1 will search for signs of water-ice in craters near the Moon's poles, provide data to shed light on the still uncertain origin of the Moon, and reconstruct its evolution by mapping its topography and the surface distribution of minerals and key chemical elements.

remcook · 2004-12-18 15:05:05

I think there is simply nothing to report. let's not forget, SMART is NOT an imaging satellite, it's a technology demonstrator mission, and one of its main goals is to test the Ion engine and working with these engines in terms of energy use and orbital mechanics. and that's exactly what it is doing. I think we will have to wait till SMART is in its main science orbit before we get some more pictures.
But that won't be as many as for instance MOC, since this is ESA.
It's a bit unfortunate that ESA is releasing not nearly that many pictures from eg. MarsXpress, Envisat, SMART, but I think ESA is also a lot poorer than NASA. may not be an excuse... But I do think that the pictures they DO release are simply amazing And I like that flash Martian globe with the arrows sticking out of it

djellison · 2004-12-18 16:04:17

I think ESA is also a lot poorer than NASA.

It shouldnt be - the ESA member states add up to a population very much the same as the USA's

Doug

remcook · 2004-12-19 04:35:26

yes...it's a real shame. and most money goes to launchers and Earth observation missions. Only very few to planetary missions...

slightly less than 2.7 billion euros ($3.4 billion) for ESA

http://dev.space.com/spacenews/europe/b … 11504.html

$16.2 billion for NASA

http://www.spacetoday.net/Summary/2658] … mmary/2658

GraemeSkinner · 2004-12-20 03:53:39

From ESA website...

Smart-1
Status Arrived in lunar orbit, 15 November 2004. Due to start science operations in January 2005.

As to publicity I think the ESA is still finding its feet to some degree, once the public support is more grounded, they can get more funding.

Graeme

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-01-18 12:32:55

Just a few more tid bits:
http://www.esa.int/export/SPECIALS/SMART-1/]On this page you will find the article Moon says "Cheese" for lunar mini-camera
12 November 2004 Since its launch in September 2003, the small but remarkable SMART-1 satellite has been silently spiralling its way to the Moon. In mid November, it will be captured by lunar gravity and next January it will reach its final orbit and start science observations. This week EuroNews talks to the SMART-1 AMIE camera team.
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/lunar-03f.html] Spacedaily article
Once it enters into a near-polar orbit around the Moon in January 2005, SMART-1 will also become a science platform for lunar observation. SMART-1 will search for signs of water-ice in craters near the Moon's poles, provide data to shed light on the still uncertain origin of the Moon, and reconstruct its evolution by mapping its topography and the surface distribution of minerals and key chemical elements.

some images here on the ESA web site

successive Moon images taken by AMIE during the 1000-5000 km orbit on 29 December 2004

http://smart.esa.int/science-e-media/im … 04-410.jpg

Palomar · 2005-01-18 13:33:43

some images here on the ESA web site

successive Moon images taken by AMIE during the 1000-5000 km orbit on 29 December 2004
http://smart.esa.int/science-e-media/im … 04-410.jpg

*Congratulations on finding some images, YL Rocket. Looks like "Pythagoras" has quite a pit in it! And 120 km wide too, hmmmmm.

--Cindy

Grypd · 2005-01-18 13:49:38

ESA did plan to actually put out a lot more images as Smart starts its main mission in February. Still with the savings in fuel that Smart 1 made in arriving it probably means it will be able to go very low over the Moon and give really good closeups in photos and allow the science to be improved.

Heres hoping for some really good closeups especially around the poles

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-01-18 17:15:40

Some folks have said :
Smart-1 might be able to see the sites on the Moon, well not the flag but maybe the Landers or the scorched marks on the Moon's surface I'm not sure but I've heard some others talk about ESA's smart-one ( ion-drive European craft ) and say it might be able to see the Apollo sites. SMART-1 will not land on the Moons soil, but will work from above at varying distance going from 200 km and 4,000 km because it has a wide curved orbit. The camera maybe has a res of 27 meters per pixel at an altitude of 300 KM, I'll have to check this up and confirm if its right or wrong but it might be able to spot Apollo

some on the cameras in some of the ESA craft
http://www.space-x.ch/microcamera.htm]h … camera.htm

another photo from the craft, this time its our Earth, waning in shadow almost looking just like the Lunar phases

http://smart.esa.int/science-e-media/im … ...410.JPG

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-01-26 10:01:09

ESA did plan to actually put out a lot more images as Smart starts its main mission in February. Still with the savings in fuel that Smart 1 made in arriving it probably means it will be able to go very low over the Moon and give really good closeups in photos and allow the science to be improved.
Heres hoping for some really good closeups especially around the poles

more good info

http://sci.esa.int/science-e-media/img/ … 05-400.jpg

http://esamultimedia.esa.int/images/spc … 50125c.jpg

The first four days after being captured by the lunar gravity were very critical. There had been the risk, being in an 'unstable' trajectory, of escaping the Moon's orbit or crashing onto the surface. Because of this, the electric propulsion system (or 'ion engine') started a thrust to stabilise the capture.
The ion engine was switched on until 29 December, allowing SMART-1 to make ever-decreasing loops around the Moon. The engine was switched off between 29 December and 3 January 2005 to allow scientists to start observations. At this point, the AMIE camera took the close-up lunar images. The engine was switched off again to optimise fuel consumption on 12 January, and SMART-1 will spend until 9 February making a medium resolution survey of the Moon, taking advantage of the favourable illumination conditions.
ESA's SMART-1 Project Scientist Bernard Foing said "A sequence of test lunar observations was done in January at distances between 1000 and 5000 kilometres altitude, when the electric propulsion was paused. We are conducting more survey test observations until the electric propulsion resumes from 9 February to spiral down further towards the Moon. SMART-1 will arrive on 28 February at the initial orbit with altitudes between 300 and 3000 kilometres to perform the first phase of nominal science observations for five months."

:up:

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMY5JO3E4E_in … dex_0.html

http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.htm … ?pid=15191

:laugh:

SpaceNut · 2005-01-26 11:21:02

well from Encyclopedia Astronautica specifications pages it will be to small to distinguish it as the LM but might be seen by shadow.

Spacecraft Module: Apollo LM DS.
Other Designations: Descent Stage.

Length: 2.83 m. Basic Diameter: 4.21 m. Maximum Diameter: 9.37 m. Mass: 10,149 kg. Main Engine Thrust: 4,491 kgf. Main Engine Propellants: N2O4/UDMH. Main Engine Propellants: 8,165 kg. Main Engine Isp: 311 sec. Spacecraft delta v: 2,470 m/s. Electrical System: Batteries. Electric System: 33.0 kWh. Battery: 1,600.0 Ah.

Palomar · 2005-01-26 11:42:44

*Some very nice images, YL Rocket. The close-up of Pythagoras is especially an eye-catcher. It doesn't seem like a "regular" crater-like effect.

The Moon's craters and landscape really is pretty in its own weird way, despite being so danged stark and devoid (and actually I think it's precisely that devoid starkness which creates the peculiar beauty). What's fun is looking at the craters/landscape through a telescope when the Luna is 1/4 or 1/2 full, and seeing that razor-sharp shadow line "cutting a crater in half." Don't want to get too far off-topic, though; just thought I'd mention it.

Nice graphs/illustrations you included, too.

SMART-1 doing great, congratulations ESA! :band:

--Cindy

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-01-26 18:45:42

The Moon's craters and landscape really is pretty in its own weird way, despite being so danged stark and devoid (and actually I think it's precisely that devoid starkness which creates the peculiar beauty). What's fun is looking at the craters/landscape through a telescope when the Luna is 1/4 or 1/2 full, and seeing that razor-sharp shadow line "cutting a crater in half." Don't want to get too far off-topic, though; just thought I'd mention it.

some news items here

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/01/26 … on_europe/
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6871021/]http:/ … d/6871021/

Among AMIE's tasks is to settle a longstanding debate over whether there are significant deposits of water ice ....SMART-1 will also map the moon in infrared, helping scientists better grasp the distribution of minerals

SMART-1 will scan the lunar surface for resources, particularly water, for future, manned, missions to the moon.

Pin-pointing Lunar water-ice and minerals could be important. Looks like we may not be too far away from being able to build our first Lunar Colony and a site with humans working and studying on the Moon. They say we might be able to get some of that water-ice which is trapped inside those dark craters at the Moons North and South poles.

:up:

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-02-16 09:38:35

SMART-1 doing great, congratulations ESA! :band:
--Cindy

more here

SMART-1 Mission Extension Approved
15 Feb 2005

Quote:
The SMART-1 extension of 1 year will provide opportunities:

To extend the global coverage compared to the nominal 6 months mission, where good illumination conditions for IR spectrometry, X-ray sensitivity and quantitative colour radiometry will be encountered only for 25% of the time
To make use of the new orbit (3000 km apolune instead of original 10 000 km) to map both southern and northern hemispheres at high resolution, and not only the southern hemisphere
The new orbit is also more stable and requires less fuel for maintenance
The extension increases the probability of solar flares events (especially in rising solar activity) for very sensitive D-CIXS scans providing high resolution maps of Fe and rare elements in addition to Mg, Si, Al
The extension gives the possibility to perform detailed studies of areas of interest by performing stereo measurements for deriving topography, multi-angle observations for studying the photometric function and therefore the local regolith texture
An extension allows to perform dedicated programmes to prepare future international lunar missions (seasonal illumination maps at high resolution, mapping potential landing sites for future missions, including the South Pole Aitken Sample Return)

http://esamultimedia.esa.int/images/spc … 50125a.jpg

http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM2H8YEM4E_in … dex_0.html

Grypd · 2005-02-16 15:54:20

Great especially that knowledge of those almost permanently dark and lit places on the Moon the potential for these regions for the future of "commercial" and "scientific" uses for the Moon is exponential.

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-02-20 09:15:12

some more info on this mission

http://www.sciam.com/includes/gallery_p … ...B7FFE87
http://www.innovations-report.com/html/ … ...92.html
http://uplink.space.com/attachments//13 … geL138.jpg

several viewers have noted some strange effects
-Up or down, in or out?
...Look at these two images. They are both the same, except one appears to have 'raised' features rather than craters. This is a common illusion, and can be explained by the fact that we humans have been used to light sources which generally come from above (the Sun mostly in our case).

http://www.esa.int/export/images/_crate … _large.jpg
When you turn this pattern upside down (or rotate by 180 degrees), your eyes suddenly see a crater as a 'mountain' and vice versa.
http://www.esa.int/export/images/_crate … _large.jpg

Yang Liwei Rocket · 2005-03-01 08:50:48

There's more info on the web
http://www.esa.int/images/euronews_smar … 1_03_L.jpg
Quote:
Bernard Foing

Water-ice may be present at the bottom of some lunar craters

http://www.euronews.net/create_html.php … &langue=en
Video :
Destination Moon - European Space Agency's Smart One satellite spiralling into position above the moon's south pole. Mapping the area and preparing for a possible lunar colonisation
they also have info on Soyuz in Kourou and NASA's Cassini-Huygens on that Euronews site

"In the region of the south pole, there are many craters," says Bernard Foing displaying a large model of the lunar surface. "Some craters are very special in that the Sun's rays never reach their bottom. Temperatures there can be the coldest in the solar system, at minus 200 C, so cold as to permanently trap any water-ice. But along the crater perimeters, there are peaks that are constantly illuminated by the Sun."

SpaceNut · 2005-03-04 20:24:39

Well for all those nay sayers about the End of Conspiracy Theories? Spacecraft Snoops Apollo Moon Sites
Thank you Smart 1 has a Detailed search planned as it preforms it other observations.

A European spacecraft now orbiting the Moon could turn out to be a time machine of sorts as it photographs old landing sites of Soviet robotic probes and the areas where American Apollo crews set down and explored.
New imagery of old Apollo touchdown spots, from the European Space Agency’s (ESA) SMART-1 probe, might put to rest conspiratorial thoughts that U.S. astronauts didn’t go the distance and scuff up the lunar landscape. NASA carried out six piloted landings on the Moon in the time period 1969 through 1972.
Given SMART-1’s initial high orbit, however, it may prove difficult to see artifacts, Foing explained. Using its ion engine, the probe has successfully spiraled down further to an altitude closer to the Moon.

Of course the article goes into more details for all to read.

Palomar · 2005-03-05 06:35:26

Well for all those nay sayers about the http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/05 … p.html]End of Conspiracy Theories? Spacecraft Snoops Apollo Moon Sites
Thank you Smart 1 has a Detailed search planned as it preforms it other observations.
A European spacecraft now orbiting the Moon could turn out to be a time machine of sorts as it photographs old landing sites of Soviet robotic probes and the areas where American Apollo crews set down and explored.
New imagery of old Apollo touchdown spots, from the European Space Agency’s (ESA) SMART-1 probe, might put to rest conspiratorial thoughts that U.S. astronauts didn’t go the distance and scuff up the lunar landscape. NASA carried out six piloted landings on the Moon in the time period 1969 through 1972.
Given SMART-1’s initial high orbit, however, it may prove difficult to see artifacts, Foing explained. Using its ion engine, the probe has successfully spiraled down further to an altitude closer to the Moon.
Of course the article goes into more details for all to read.

*Yeah, I saw that article yesterday. But some folks still won't be convinced; they'll chalk it up to ESA being in cohoots with NASA, to "save face."

A friend of my husband's is adamantly convinced we "never went to the moon." A flat, no-arguments statement. (But then he's the same mental midget whose idea of good and worthy conversation is cracking bad or obscene jokes, and who looks down upon the entire Jewish population because his father had a bad experience with one Jewish person. This man was 49 years old at the time I knew him).

To my mind, it's much more of a stretch of the imagination to believe so many reporters, government officials, scientists (including those who later studied the moon rocks), engineers, USAF, the astronauts themselves, museum curators etc., could and would be in agreement to lie, falsify, etc. (and for decades now) something which "never happened" (and more than once) than it is to believe they actually went there. :laugh:

There are all kinds of dingalings in the world, I guess.

Ah well, don't want to get too far off-topic.

--Cindy

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#26 2004-11-22 06:48:38

Re: SMART-1 - ESA lunar orbiter

#27 2004-11-25 10:16:48

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