High Resolution Lunar Terrain from JPL

The Goldstone Solar System Radar in the Mojave Desert has collected data that provides the highest resolution map of the lunar south pole at 20 square meters per pixel.

"The south pole of the moon certainly would be a beautiful place to explore," said Doug Cooke, deputy associate administrator for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, Washington. "We now know the south pole has peaks as high as Mt. McKinley and crater floors four times deeper than the Grand Canyon. There are challenges that come with such rugged terrain, and these data will be an invaluable tool for advance planning of lunar missions."

Read the full press release from NASA JPL: link.

Where is the Goldstone Solar System Radar? Locate it in Google Maps: link.

NASA Lunar Robot Rover with Drill

Courtesy: SpaceRef

At AIAA's 3rd Space Exploration Conference this week in Denver, Colorado, NASA will display a rover designed to drill into regolith and prospect lunar craters. The rover will be equipped with an instrument package known as the Regolith and Environment Science and Oxygen and Lunar Volatile Extraction (RESOLVE), which will be used to characterize the composition of lunar regolith. The instrument package will take a sample of regolith, crush it, heat it, and detect the gases that escape. 

Read the full press release on SpaceRef.

For more information, see also:

• nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/main/lunar_truck.html
• spaceflightsystems.grc.nasa.gov/Advanced/Capabilities/ISRU
• www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar_resources