NASA space probe to crash into the moon April 21st
Posted by: Timothy Weaver on 04/06/2014 10:33 AM
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The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) probe is expected to crash into the surface of the moon on April 21st.
It has also been testing NASA's homegrown space broadband system. Information that the probe has collected has been fired back to earth using a laser which has achieved connection speeds faster than 600Mbps with receiving stations on Earth.
The probe has analyzed the dust that is emitted when small pebbles collide with the moon and found that they are electrostatically charged. This does not bode well for solar panels and other equipment, which cling to the panels and are highly abrasive.
The probe is expected to crash as it uses up its remaining fuel. Unfortunately, it is expected to crash on the dark side of the moon. April 21st is a guess.
NASA is asking members of the public, just for fun, to log into the site and guess when the crash will occur. There is no big prize, but NASA will send the winner a signed certificate.
It has also been testing NASA's homegrown space broadband system. Information that the probe has collected has been fired back to earth using a laser which has achieved connection speeds faster than 600Mbps with receiving stations on Earth.
The probe has analyzed the dust that is emitted when small pebbles collide with the moon and found that they are electrostatically charged. This does not bode well for solar panels and other equipment, which cling to the panels and are highly abrasive.
The probe is expected to crash as it uses up its remaining fuel. Unfortunately, it is expected to crash on the dark side of the moon. April 21st is a guess.
NASA is asking members of the public, just for fun, to log into the site and guess when the crash will occur. There is no big prize, but NASA will send the winner a signed certificate.
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