NASAThe NASA spacecraft: collecting matter and studying the lunar atmosphereNASA
NASA has plans to send manned missions to the Moon (the last astronauts on the moon were in an Apollo spacecraft in 1972). The proximity to Earth, however, makes the natural satellite a prime target for scientific missions. On September 6, NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer departed for the moon. Weighing in at 383 kg, it will collect data on the structure and chemical composition of the lunar atmosphere. The goal is to collect dust and gaseous molecules and to look for silicon, magnesium and other elements derived from lunar rock. The researchers hope the data will help to explain the brightness above the Moon’s horizon that was observed just before sunrise by the missions of the 1960s. They also hope that the study of the characteristics of the lunar atmosphere will help us to understand other objects in the solar system such as the planet Mercury and large asteroids. The probe will remain for some time well above the moon’s surface and will conduct tests. Its mission of studying the atmosphere will not begin until sometime around November and is expected to last 100 days. Next year, an unmanned module is scheduled to land on the moon, sent by China this time.
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