* Astronomy

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RE: Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

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The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) robotic spacecraft impacted the Moon on October 9, 2009.

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A New Face On The Moon

The NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft, which in late June marked three years in lunar polar orbit, is continuing to build on its list of major discoveries that is putting a new face on the Moon.
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New LRO Video: Tour of the Moon

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The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is a NASA robotic spacecraft currently orbiting the Moon on a low 50 km polar mapping orbit. Launched on 18 June 2009, in conjunction with the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), as the vanguard of NASA's Lunar Precursor Robotic Program, this is the first United States mission to the Moon in over ten years.
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Seeing the Moon Like Never Before

Jim Bell's Sky and Telescope cover story "Seeing the Moon Like Never Before" takes a look at some of the spectacular observations the LRO has sent back to Earth from its orbit above the lunar surface. NLSI has been showcasing many of the best LRO images, but Bell takes you through a narrated tour that is unparalleled. From a football-field-sized boulder balanced on a mountain top to erosion patterns in craters, the lunar sights are anything but mundane little rocks.
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ASU team releases high resolution global topographic map of Moon

The Arizona State University team that oversees the imaging system on board NASAs Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has released the highest resolution near-global topographic map of the Moon ever created. This new topographic map shows the surface shape and features over nearly the entire Moon with a pixel scale close to 100 meters. A single measure of elevation (one pixel) is about the size of two football fields placed side-by-side. At this scale explorers can accurately investigate kilometre-scale and larger craters, volcanoes, and mountains.
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The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was a robotic spacecraft operated by NASA.
LCROSS was designed to collect and relay data from the impact and debris plume resulting from the launch vehicle's spent Centaur upper stage (and data collecting Shepherding Spacecraft) striking the crater Cabeus near the south pole of the Moon.
Centaur had nominal impact mass of 2,305 kg, and an impact velocity of about 10,000 km/h.
Centaur impacted successfully on October 9, 2009, at 11:31 UTC. The Shepherding Spacecraft descended through Centaur's ejectate plume, collected and relayed data, impacting six minutes later at 11:37 UTC
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NASA Spacecraft Images Offer Sharper Views Of Apollo Landing Sites

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface.
At the Apollo 17 site, the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior.
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NASA Details Achievements Of Lunar Spacecraft

NASA has declared full mission success for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO). LRO changed our view of the entire moon and brought it into sharper focus with unprecedented detail.
NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD) operated the LRO spacecraft and its instruments during the one-year mission phase. Now that the final data from the instruments have been added to the agency's Planetary Data System, the mission has completed the full success requirements. The data system, which is publicly available, archives data from past and present planetary missions as well as astronomical observations and laboratory data.
The rich new portrait rendered by LRO's seven instruments is the result of more than 192 terabytes of data, images and maps, the equivalent of nearly 41,000 typical DVDs.
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NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Delivers Treasure Trove of Data

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NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) team released the final set of data from the mission's exploration phase along with the first measurements from its new life as a science satellite.
With this fifth release of data, striking new images and maps have been added to the already comprehensive collection of raw lunar data and high-level products, including mosaic images, that LRO has made possible. The spacecraft's seven instruments delivered more than 192 terabytes of data with an unprecedented level of detail. It would take approximately 41,000 typical DVDs to hold the new LRO data set.
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