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Viewing the Moon On International Observe the Moon Night 2011

Viewing the Moon On International Observe the Moon Night 2011. Brian Day LADEE Mission E/PO Lead NASA Lunar Science Institute Citizen Science Lead Brian.H.Day@nasa.gov. The Moon with the Unaided Eye. A Binocular View of the Moon. Lunar Mare. Mare Imbrium 1,145 km. Lunar Mare.

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Viewing the Moon On International Observe the Moon Night 2011

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  1. Viewing the Moon On International Observe the Moon Night 2011 Brian Day LADEE Mission E/PO Lead NASA Lunar Science Institute Citizen Science Lead Brian.H.Day@nasa.gov

  2. The Moon with the Unaided Eye

  3. A Binocular View of the Moon

  4. Lunar Mare Mare Imbrium 1,145 km

  5. Lunar Mare Mare Serenitatis 674 km

  6. Lunar Mare Mare Tranquillitatis873 km

  7. Lunar Mare Mare Crisium 555 km

  8. Lunar Mare Mare Fecunditatis 840 km

  9. Lunar Mare Mare Nectaris 333 km

  10. Lunar Mare Mare Nubium 715 km

  11. Lunar Mare Mare Humorum 389 km

  12. Lunar Mare Oceanus Procellarum 2,592 km

  13. Bright Rayed Craters Tycho 85 km

  14. Bright Rayed Craters Copernicus 93 km

  15. Bright Rayed Craters Kepler 32 km

  16. Gruithuisen Domes 1630 m high Prinz 46 km

  17. Gruithuisen Domes – Silicic Volcanoes

  18. Gassendi 110 km Mare Humorum 389 km

  19. Schiller 180 km by 70 km

  20. Schröter’s Valley 160 km long 10 km wide 200 - 1000 m deep. Aristarchus 40 km Herodetus 34 km

  21. Marius Hills ~300 volcanic cones and domes with associated rilles

  22. A new generation of post-Apollo robotic lunar explorers has revolutionized our understanding of the Moon. USA Clementine Lunar Prospector LCROSS LRO Artemis GRAIL Europe SMART 1 China Chang’e 1 Chang’e 2 Japan Kaguya India Chandrayaan 1

  23. Our new view of the Moon includes: • Water ice at the poles • The coldest places we have yet measured in the solar system • Places with nearly constant sunlight • A very thin atmosphere • More complex geology than we had thought

  24. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) • LROC – image and map the lunar surface in unprecedented detail • LOLA – provide precise global lunar topographic data through laser altimetry • LAMP – remotely probe the Moon’s permanently shadowed regions • CRaTER - characterize the global lunar radiation environment • DIVINER – measure lunar surface temperatures & map compositional variations • LEND – measure neutron flux to study hydrogen concentrations in lunar soil

  25. Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics • of Moon's Interaction with the Sun • Mission will study how solar wind electrifies, alters and erodes the Moon's surface. • ARTEMIS will collect important data about the Moon's core, its surface composition, and whether it contains pockets of magnetism. • Mission consists of two spacecraft, Artemis P1 and Artemis P2. • Spacecraft were originally part of the 5-spacecraft THEMIS • mission studying space weather from Earth orbit. • The ARTEMIS mission allowed NASA to repurpose two in-orbit spacecraft to extend their useful science mission.

  26. Gravity Recovery and Interior LaboratoryGRAIL • Launched Sept 10, 2011. • Microwave ranging system will precisely measure the distance between the two satellites. • Use high-quality gravity field mapping to determine the Moon's interior structure. • Determine the structure of the lunar interior, from crust to core and to advance understanding of the thermal evolution of the Moon.

  27. LADEE The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer • Determine the global density, composition, and time variability of the fragile lunar atmosphere before it is perturbed by further human activity. • Determine the size, charge, and spatial distribution of electrostatically transported dust grains. • Test laser communication capabilities. • Demonstrate a low-cost lunar mission: • Simple multi-mission modular bus design • Low-cost launch vehicle

  28. Observe the Moon and the Draconid Meteors Too! • Fragments from Comet Giacobini-Zinner • Earth predicted to pass through cloud of dust ejected in 1900 • Maximum rates estimated to be as high as 600-750/hour • An outburst lasting about 3 hours is expected to peak around 20:00 UT • Observers in Europe and North Africa favored. • Possibility of observable lunar impacts, but Moon phase is very bright. • More info at http://draconids.seti.org/

  29. Questions

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