Lcross Impact Video

Lcross Impact Video

The identification of water is very important to the future of human activities on the Moon. LCROSS will excavate the permanently dark floor of one of the Moon’s polar craters with two heavy impactors to test the theory that ancient ice lies buried there. The impact will eject material from the crater’s surface to create a plume that specialized instruments will be able to analyze for the presence of water (ice and vapor), hydrocarbons and hydrated materials.LCROSS will also provide technologies and modular, reconfigurable subsystems that can be used to support future mission architectures.Ames Research Center (ARC) is managing the mission, conducting mission operations, and has developed the payload instruments, while Northrop Grumman designed and built the spacecraft for this innovative mission. Ames mission scientists will spearhead the data analysis. This is a fast-paced, low-cost, mission that will leverage some existing NASA systems, Northrop-Grumman spacecraft expertise, and Ames’ Lunar Prospector experience.

Just like on Earth, water is a crucial resource on the Moon. It will not be practical to transport to space the amount of water needed for human and exploration needs. It is critical to find natural resources, such as water, on the Moon. The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission will begin the search for water, leveraging the information we learned from the Clementine and Lunar Prospector missions. NASA’s Lunar Prospector first unveiled that there were hydrogen signatures located in craters on the dark side of the moon back in 1999. Ever since, researchers have eager to verify the presence of water on the moon.
The Lunar CRater Observing and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was tasked with uncovering the truth, with millions watching as it happened. NASA's LCROSS (Lunar CRater Observing and Sensing Satellite) mission is coming to a glorious end. The mission launched on June 18, 2009 is just minutes away from making dual-impact on the face of the moon.The first impact sees the Centaur craft hitting the surface at a speed of about 1 mile per second ejecting about 350 tons of debris from a crater about 20-30-meters in diameter and 2- to 4-meters deep.

A second Shepherding spacecraft will pass through the debris plume 4 minutes later, collecting and relaying data back to Earth in real-time before meeting its end. With any luck, we'll know shortly if the moon contains the water-ice theorized by scientists... and cheese. While the obvious use of lunar-based water is to sate the thirst of astronauts, it could also be used be make fuel for off-Earth exploration. Hit the read link for live streaming of the mission from NASA -- first impact occurs at 07:31:19 AM EDT. Impact occurred... are we still here? Data is now being analyzed and NASA is expected to know the facts in about an hour. Post-impact news conference scheduled for 10:00 AM EDT. Tom did a great job recording the LCROSS impact, and publishing the video to YouTube. There doesn’t seem to be much of a plume from the Centuar’s impact… okay, I can’t see one at all. We’re waiting for the first analysis of the plume. Either they identify water ice or not; as Tom says either result is scientifically important and interesting.
NASA also has several videos up on YouTube this morning; of the impact and the press conferences. The planetarium plans to show videos of the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) and its rocket booster smashing into the moon this morning. From the plume created by the impact, instruments aboard LCROSS can tell scientists what's in the moon dust, with the hope of detecting the presence of ancient ice that could be used for future exploration.