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Archived Features: June 2009 |
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LCROSS PREPARES FOR JUNE 17 LAUNCH | June 3, 2009 |
 The LCROSS spacecraft has been mated with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
and enclosed in the payload shroud of the Atlas V launch vehicle. The twin
spacecraft are sitting in the mobile service tower at Launch Complex 41 at
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. At
Ames, the LCROSS Mission and Science Operations teams are conducting 24-hour
per day rehearsals, simulating the first six days of flight and ending after
lunar swingby. Launch is scheduled for June 17 at 12:51pm (PDT). The
primary mission of LCROSS is to search for water ice in permanently
shadowed regions near the lunar South Pole. Lunar Impact is predicted for
October 8. Frequent mission updates are available at
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LCROSS/main/Mission_Status.html. Full resolution Image credit: NASA. |
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KEPLER CONDUCTS SCIENCE MISSION | June 3, 2009 |
Full resolution Kepler's search for extrasolar terrestrial planets has begun! For at least the next 3.5 years, Kepler will stare at a patch of sky and look for periodic dimming of starlight caused by transiting planets. The first monthly download of science data through the Deep Space Network is scheduled for June 18. Based solely on the engineering data analyzed during the two-month commissioning phase, Ames scientists are confident that the Kepler photometer will exceed its designed sensitivity. Updates from the Ames Mission Manager are available at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/news/ Image Credit: NASA |
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