Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

cIclops · 2007-03-17 07:51:35

Yes this is the LPRP project, the follow on robotic lander after LRO/LCROSS, these missions are fully funded and on schedule for launch 31 Oct 2008. Both the House and Senate space committees are working hard to restore/add funding to NASA, so LPRP may be reinstated.

SpaceNut · 2007-08-13 08:37:36

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) to develop low cost lunar orbiter for NASA has been awarded a contract for the study phase of a potential joint US-UK lunar orbiter mission to be called Magnolia.

The next phase of the Magnolia mission is planned to start in 2008 and could lead to the launch of the mission in 2010.

www.sstl.co.uk

The text of the Joint Statement of Intent is located on the web at address:

http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/174684main_Sign … tement.pdf

SpaceNut · 2007-10-07 20:46:34

Suitcase Science on the Moon

As part of an effort to develop new opportunities to conduct important science investigations during the planned renewal of human exploration of the moon, NASA chose seven proposals from more than 70 submissions under the Lunar Sortie Science Opportunities (LSSO) Program.
The seven selected proposals will result in advanced development for simple, automated instrument packages deployed on the lunar surface by astronauts. Such "suitcase science" packages could open up a wide variety of research applications regarding the moon and the lunar environment.
Two proposals from scientists at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., were chosen; one to study moonquakes, called "Seismology and Heat flow instrument package for Lunar Science and Hazards," and another to search for possible frozen water deposits at the lunar south pole, called "Volatile Analysis by Pyrolysis of Regolith (VAPoR) on the Moon using Mass Spectrometry".

Goddard Lunar Science on a Roll

Pack your bags because Goddard's "suitcase science" is taking off. Coming on the heels of two Lunar Sortie Science Opportunities (LSSO) awards for Goddard are two more, this time in the field of astrophysics. As before, the awards are funded by NASA Headquarters for studies that could result in simple, automated "suitcase science" instrument packages deployed on the lunar surface by astronauts.

SpaceNut · 2007-10-08 06:35:34

NASA Spacecraft to Carry Russian Science Instruments

NASA Administrator Michael Griffin and Roscosmos head Anatoly Perminov signed agreements in Moscow on Oct. 3 to add the instruments to two future missions: the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, scheduled to launch in October 2008, and the Mars Science Laboratory, an advanced robotic rover scheduled to launch in 2009.
Russia's Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will search for evidence of water ice and help understand astronauts' exposure to radiation during future trips to the moon. The instrument will map concentrations of hydrogen that may be found on and just beneath the lunar surface.

cIclops · 2007-11-10 05:34:20

LRO propulsion module (left side of photo) completed its proof pressure testing - 25 Oct 2007

Assembly Progress - 8 Nov 2007

SpaceNut · 2008-01-10 22:30:47

NASA's Next Moon Mission Spacecraft Undergoing Critical Tests

The spacecraft will ship to NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in August in preparation for launch. The orbiter and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite will launch aboard an Atlas V rocket in late 2008. The trip to the moon will take approximately four days. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter initially will enter an elliptical orbit, also called the commissioning orbit. Once moved into its final orbit, a circular polar orbit approximately 31 miles above the moon, the spacecraft's instruments will map the lunar surface.

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

cIclops · 2008-01-24 06:50:08

Safe-to-mate checks of the flight harness during integration of the PDE

Assembly Progress - 21 Jan 2008

LRO's modular spacecraft design is really paying off right now. While the electrical team connects the Power System Electronics (PSE), the Command and Data Handling (C&DH) system, and the Propulsion and Deployment Electronics (PDE) to the flight harness, the propulsion team is putting the finishing touches on the propulsion module, the mechanical team is installing the reaction wheels on the Ðz panel, and the facilities team is baking out the Instrument Module. The PSE and C&DH each attach to all of the other electronics in the Orbiter, and we must check out every signal on every connector, so the integration took a few days. We are currently working on the PDE electrical integration. We had our first official power-up of the spacecraft last week, successfully sending commands and receiving telemetry. The Gimbal Control Electronics are mounted to the panel, but not yet connected. Also last week, CRaTER completed its post-ship functional.

That's a lot of cables!

SpaceNut · 2008-02-27 19:07:12

NASA Takes Aim at Moon with Double Sledgehammer

NASA's previous Lunar Prospector mission detected large amounts of hydrogen at the moon's poles before crashing itself into a crater at the lunar South Pole. Now the much larger Lunar Crater and Observation Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission, set for a February 2009 moon crash, will take aim and discover whether some of that hydrogen is locked away in the form of frozen water.
LCROSS will piggyback on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission for an Oct. 28 launch atop an Atlas 5 rocket equipped with a Centaur upper stage. While the launch will ferry LRO to the moon in about four days, LCROSS is in for a three-month journey to reach its proper moon smashing position. Once within range, the Centaur upper stage doubles as the main 4,400 pound (2,000 kg) impactor spacecraft for LCROSS.
The smaller Shepherding Spacecraft will guide Centaur towards its target crater, before dropping back to watch - and later fly through - the plume of moon dust and debris kicked up by Centaur's impact. The shepherding vehicle is packed with a light photometer, a visible light camera and four infrared cameras to study the Centaur's lunar plume before it turns itself into a second impactor and strikes a different crater about four minutes later.
Figuring out the final destinations for the $79 million LCROSS mission is "like trying to drive to San Francisco and not knowing where it is on the map," Colaprete said.
"Nobody has ever been to the poles of the moon, and there are very unique craters - similar to Mercury - where sunlight doesn't reach the bottom," Colaprete said. Earth-based radar has also helped illuminate some permanently shadowed craters. By the time LCROSS arrives, it can zero in on its 19 mile (30 km) wide targets within 328 feet (100 meters).
Scientists want the impactor spacecraft to hit smooth, flat areas away from large rocks, which would ideally allow the impact plume to rise up out of the crater shadows into sunlight. That in turn lets LRO and Earth-based telescopes see the results.
LCROSS will take a much more head-on approach than either Lunar Prospector or Smart-1, slamming into the moon's craters at a steep angle while traveling with greater mass at 1.6 miles per second (2.5 km/s). The overall energy of the impact will equal 100 times that of Lunar Prospector and kick up 1,102 tons of debris and dust.

cIclops · 2008-03-10 07:04:47

LCROSS bus from Looking for water on a budget (PDF 3MB) - 27 Feb 2008

cIclops · 2008-05-08 02:46:16

LRO

Assembly progress - 1 May 2008

We completed testing with the Deep Space Network last week, and this week we are testing with our primary ground station, White Sands 1. These tests ensure that we can properly communicate with our spacecraft during flight. During the evening shifts, the blanket technicians have been designing the thermal blankets that will protect the orbiter from the temperature extremes in lunar orbit.
During the LOLA safe-to-mate electrical tests, we discovered a problem with the signal levels on the instrument's data interface. The LOLA team tracked down the problem to a polarity reversal on a transformer. The circuit is already corrected, and we are running the electronics box through some workmanship testing to make sure everything is OK. Most of the instrument, including the laser, remained on the spacecraft. We should have the entire instrument running again next week.
The solar array gimbal will be out of its thermal vacuum testing tomorrow, and it will meet up with the solar panels for some integrated testing. The High-Gain Antenna System blankets are installed. We are working through some interference issues with the blankets - we want to make sure that everything moves freely. The HGAS should be ready for thermal vacuum testing next week. LROC and Mini-RF are both nearly finished with their thermal vacuum testing.

Presentations from the LCROSS workshop - 29 Feb 2008

Mars_B4_Moon · 2022-06-26 06:03:28

Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spots rocket impact site on Moon

https://www.moondaily.com/reports/Lunar … n_999.html

SpaceNut · 2024-01-20 16:40:47

Laser instrument on NASA's LRO successfully pings Indian moon lander

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#26 2007-03-17 07:51:35

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#27 2007-08-13 08:37:36

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#28 2007-10-07 20:46:34

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#29 2007-10-08 06:35:34

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#30 2007-11-10 05:34:20

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#31 2008-01-10 22:30:47

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#32 2008-01-24 06:50:08

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#33 2008-02-27 19:07:12

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#34 2008-03-10 07:04:47

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#35 2008-05-08 02:46:16

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#36 2022-06-26 06:03:28

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

#37 2024-01-20 16:40:47

Re: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) & LCROSS impactor

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