Learn About Earth's Nearest Neighbor - The Moon
NASA is seeking proposals for sustainable lunar lander development and demonstration as the agency works toward a regular cadence of Moon landings.
Through Artemis missions, NASA is preparing to return humans to the Moon, including the first woman and first person of color, for long-term scientific discovery and exploration.
Under the solicitation, Human Landing System Sustaining Lunar … Read the rest of this article
It seems that the way the Moon moves in its orbit affects mangrove tree cover across Australia and new research suggests the it likely contributed to mass tree deaths in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
A study published in the journal Science Advances has found that an 18.61-year cycle known as the lunar nodal cycle shapes the condition of tidal wetlands.… Read the rest of this article
Chinese scientists have achieved a remarkable feat in their research of the Moon as they have discovered and identified the sixth new lunar mineral.
The China National Space Administration and the China Atomic Energy Authority jointly announced in Beijing on Friday, September 9thm 2022, that the new mineral – Changesite-(Y) – was found by scientists at the Beijing Research Institute … Read the rest of this article
Some piece of space debris is soon to slam into the Moon.
The origin of that debris has been hard to identify.
Initially, it was thought that it was debris from one of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 missions in 2015.
That was eventually ruled out.
Then the finger was pointed at China and that the debris is part of one of … Read the rest of this article
With humans returning to the Moon later this decade. preparations are underway for building the lunar Gateway.
The Gateway will serve as a multi-purpose outpost orbiting the Moon that provides essential support for long-term human return to the lunar surface.
It will also serve as a staging point for further deep space exploration.
European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Alexander … Read the rest of this article
China’s Chang’e 4 mission which combined both a lander and a rover called Yutu 2, was launched to the Moon on 7 December 2018.
After arriving in lunar orbit on December 12th, it orbited the Moon for a few weeks before landing on the Moon’s far side on January 3rd, 2019.
The solar-powered Yutu 2 and Chang’e 4 lander made … Read the rest of this article
NASA has awarded Intuitive Machines of Houston a contract to deliver research, including science investigations and a technology demonstration, to the Moon in 2024.
The commercial delivery is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative and the Artemis program.
The investigations aboard Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander are destined for Reiner Gamma, one of the most … Read the rest of this article
In the first major Artemis update provided under the Biden-Harris Administration, NASA leadership discussed on November 9th the challenges and progress of America’s lunar exploration plans and reiterated a long-term commitment to exploring the Moon and sending astronauts to Mars.
The update follows a judge’s recent decision to uphold NASA’s selection of SpaceX to develop and demonstrate a modern human … Read the rest of this article
The payloads, including one from JPL, mark the agency’s first selections from its Payloads and Research Investigations on the Surface of the Moon (PRISM) call for proposals.
As NASA continues plans for multiple commercial deliveries to the Moon’s surface per year, the agency has selected three new scientific investigation payload suites to advance understanding of Earth’s nearest neighbor.
Two of … Read the rest of this article
This video of lunar imagery taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter attempts to capture the mood of Claude Debussy’s best-known composition, Clair de Lune (Moonlight in French).
The music was originally published in 1905 as the third of four movements in the composer’s Suite Bergamasque. Clair is quiet, contemplative, and slightly melancholy, evoking the feeling of a solitary walk through … Read the rest of this article