Space Directorate: Science@Ames

Science@Ames

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LCROSS ANNOUNCES FIRST RESULTS - Nov 13, 2009

The first preliminary results from the October 9 LCROSS lunar impacts were announced at a NASA press conference held today at Ames Research Center. While the LCROSS science team is still analyzing the large amounts of spectacular data obtained by the sheparding spacecraft and other observatories, it is confident that the spectral results are consistent with the presence of water in the permanently shadowed region of Cabeus crater. The team has reconstructed the Centaur impact event through all of its phases - the initial flash, the resultant impact crater and the subsequent debris plume. All nine of the LCROSS instruments worked well and returned high-quality data.

The absorption signature of water is present in data returned from the spacecraft’s near-infrared spectrometers. Moreover, ultraviolet data returned from the UV/visible spectrometer reveal the presence of hydroxol (OH), which results from the photolysis of water vapor. The science team continues to assess the amount of water vapor observed in the impact plume. For additional details, please see the press release and supporting graphics materials available at http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/news/releases/2009/09-146AR.html.

The science team will continue to analyze its results and anticipates new results, including the identification of additional compounds, at the American Geophysical Union conference in San Francisco December 14-18.

SOFIA PREPARES FOR FLIGHT
Another milestone in the development of the SOFIA airborne infrared observatory occurs when the first (partially) open-door flight occurs in Palmdale, California in November. The flight will be followed by a series of additional flights where the airplane door will be opened by greater amounts as the flight characteristics of the Boeing 747 and its 2.5-meter diameter telescope are assessed. The "first light" astronomical image is anticipated in March 2010, with science flights being initiated in July. To follow the progress of SOFIA towards science operations, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/SOFIA/

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Ames Science Missions

Kepler is a Discovery-class mission featuring a visible-light telescope designed to detect transiting planets around stars. It is expected to detect hundreds of Earth-size planets in or near the habitable zone and will determine the fraction of stars with such terrestrial planets.
LCROSS is a co-manifested spacecraft with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and will intentionally impact a lunar polar crater. The resulting plume will be observed by orbiting and ground-based telescopes to ascertain whether water exists in a permanently shadowed region of the Moon.
SOFIA is an airborne observatory featuring a 2.5 m infrared telescope fitted aboard a 747 airplane. Flying state-of-the-art instrumentation at altitudes above 40,000 feet, the observatory will study astronomical phenomena in our Solar system, Galaxy and the nearby Universe.

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