{ "count": 85, "next": null, "previous": null, "results": [ { "id": 5587, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5587/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2025-12-11T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2026", "description": "The animation archived on this page shows the geocentric phase, libration, position angle of the axis, and apparent diameter of the Moon throughout the year 2026, at hourly intervals.", "hits": 5063 }, { "id": 5588, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5588/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2025-12-11T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2026 South Up", "description": "The animation archived on this page shows the geocentric phase, libration, position angle of the axis, and apparent diameter of the Moon throughout the year 2026, at hourly intervals.", "hits": 575 }, { "id": 5415, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5415/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2024-11-22T09:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2025", "description": "The geocentric phase, libration, position angle of the axis, and apparent diameter of the Moon throughout the year 2025, at hourly intervals.", "hits": 2935 }, { "id": 5416, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5416/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2024-11-22T09:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2025 South Up", "description": " || The data in the table for all of 2025 can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || ", "hits": 490 }, { "id": 5187, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5187/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2023-11-16T08:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2024", "description": " || The data in the table for all of 2024 can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [87.6 KB] || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) [14.8 MB] || ", "hits": 1068 }, { "id": 5188, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5188/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2023-11-16T08:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2024 South Up", "description": " || The data in the table for all of 2024 can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [87.3 KB] || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) [15.0 MB] || ", "hits": 201 }, { "id": 5048, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5048/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2022-11-09T13:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2023", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 746 }, { "id": 5049, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5049/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2022-11-09T13:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2023 South Up", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 121 }, { "id": 5033, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5033/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2022-09-28T14:00:00-04:00", "title": "November 8, 2022 Total Lunar Eclipse: Telescopic View", "description": "The Dial-a-Moon on this page shows what the Moon looks like through a telescope during the November 8, 2022 total lunar eclipse.", "hits": 187 }, { "id": 4979, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4979/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2022-03-24T01:00:00-04:00", "title": "May 15-16, 2022 Total Lunar Eclipse: Telescopic View", "description": "On May 16, 2022 (the night of May 15), the Moon enters the Earth's shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse. This visualization simulates the view through a telescope during the eclipse.", "hits": 216 }, { "id": 4955, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4955/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2021-11-18T10:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2022", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 939 }, { "id": 4956, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4956/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2021-11-18T09:59:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2022 South Up", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 351 }, { "id": 4902, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4902/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2021-04-26T09:00:00-04:00", "title": "May 26, 2021 Total Lunar Eclipse: Telescopic View", "description": "On May 26, 2021, the Moon enters the Earth's shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse. This visualization simulates the view through a telescope during the eclipse.", "hits": 156 }, { "id": 4874, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4874/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2020-11-23T00:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2021", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 1122 }, { "id": 4875, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4875/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2020-11-23T00:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2021 South Up", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 135 }, { "id": 4768, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4768/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2019-12-12T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2020", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 890 }, { "id": 4769, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4769/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2019-12-12T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2020 South Up", "description": "Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || || ", "hits": 104 }, { "id": 4593, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4593/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2018-12-21T09:00:00-05:00", "title": "Earthrise in 4K", "description": "On December 24, 1968, Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and Bill Anders became the first humans to witness the Earth rising above the moon's barren surface. Now we can relive the astronauts' experience, thanks to data from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. 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Music performed by Timothy Michael Hammond, distributed by Killer Tracks.This video is also on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel at both 720p (HD) and 2160p (UHD or 4K). || moonlight_prores.00210_print.jpg (1024x576) [25.1 KB] || moonlight_prores.00210_searchweb.png (320x180) [9.8 KB] || moonlight_prores.00210_thm.png (80x40) [970 bytes] || moonlight_720p30.webm (1280x720) [34.3 MB] || moonlight_1080p30.mp4 (1920x1080) [312.4 MB] || moonlight_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [319.9 MB] || moonlight_360p30.mp4 (640x360) [94.6 MB] || moonlight_2160p30.mp4 (3840x2160) [341.2 MB] || moonlight_1080p30_prores.mov (1920x1080) [4.2 GB] || moonlight_2160p30_prores.mov (3840x2160) [15.8 GB] || moonlight_2160p30.hwshow || moonlight_1080p30.hwshow || ", "hits": 185 }, { "id": 4614, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4614/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2018-01-23T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "January 31, 2018 Total Lunar Eclipse: Shadow View", "description": "The Moon moves right to left, passing through the penumbra and umbra, leaving in its wake an eclipse diagram with the times at various stages of the eclipse. 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Narrated by LRO Deputy Project Scientist Noah Petro. Music provided by Killer Tracks: Facing the Truth — TV Mix by Eric Chevalier. || MoonFeaturesReinerGammaStill_Image_print.jpg (1024x576) [104.4 KB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Facebook.mp4 (1280x720) [48.9 MB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Twitter.mp4 (1280x720) [9.0 MB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Facebook.webm (1280x720) [3.6 MB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Captions.en_US.srt [741 bytes] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Captions.en_US.vtt [753 bytes] || MoonFeaturesReinerGammaStill_Image.tif (3840x2160) [31.7 MB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Youtube4k.mp4 (3840x2160) [145.0 MB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-MASTER_4KProres.mov (3840x2160) [2.1 GB] || MoonFeaturesReinerGamma-Twitter.mp4.hwshow [197 bytes] || ", "hits": 177 }, { "id": 4537, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4537/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2016-12-22T15:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2017", "description": " || Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || ", "hits": 250 }, { "id": 4538, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4538/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2016-12-22T15:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2017 South Up", "description": " || Dial-A-Moon || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) || comp.0001.tif (5760x3240) || ", "hits": 84 }, { "id": 4444, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4444/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2016-08-01T09:00:00-04:00", "title": "Rima Prinz and Vera", "description": "The camera zooms from an overhead, global view centered on the northern rim of Prinz crater, at 26.3°N 43.7°W, down to an oblique, close-up view of Vera crater and the associated rille, Rima Prinz. Narrated by NASA Goddard planetary geologist Debra Hurwitz Needham. || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER.00540_print.jpg (1024x576) [68.7 KB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_appletv.m4v (1280x720) [17.0 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_appletv_subtitles.m4v (1280x720) [17.0 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER.webm (1280x720) [3.5 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_large.mp4 (3840x2160) [37.0 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_ipod_sm.mp4 (320x240) [6.2 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_youtube_hq.en_US.srt [747 bytes] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_youtube_hq.en_US.vtt [760 bytes] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER.mpeg (1280x720) [122.3 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_prores.mov (1280x720) [510.9 MB] || RimaPrinzVera_MASTER_youtube_hq.mov (3840x2160) [305.5 MB] || ", "hits": 56 }, { "id": 4404, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4404/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-12-10T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2016", "description": " || Click on the image to download a high-resolution version with labels for craters near the terminator.The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [74.4 KB] || comp.0001.tif (1920x1080) [2.5 MB] || ", "hits": 699 }, { "id": 4405, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4405/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-12-10T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2016 South Up", "description": " || Click on the image to download a high-resolution version with labels for craters near the terminator.The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [74.4 KB] || comp.0001.tif (3840x2160) [7.1 MB] || ", "hits": 79 }, { "id": 4356, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4356/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-09-15T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO and the September 27-28, 2015 Lunar Eclipse: Telescopic View", "description": "On September 28, 2015 (the night of September 27), the Moon enters the Earth's shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse. This visualization simulates the view through a telescope during the eclipse while also showing the position of the LRO spacecraft.", "hits": 63 }, { "id": 4341, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4341/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-09-01T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "September 27, 2015 Total Lunar Eclipse: View from the Moon", "description": "With the lunar horizon in the foreground, the Earth passes in front of the Sun, revealing the red ring of sunrises and sunsets along the limb of the Earth. The Earth and Sun are in Virgo for observers on the Moon. The bright star above them is beta Virginis.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. || eclipse.0540_print.jpg (1024x576) [77.0 KB] || eclipse.0540_searchweb.png (320x180) [47.4 KB] || eclipse.0540_thm.png (80x40) [3.4 KB] || from_moon_1080p30.mp4 (1920x1080) [7.4 MB] || from_moon_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [3.2 MB] || 1920x1080_16x9_30p (1920x1080) [0 Item(s)] || from_moon_720p30.webm (1280x720) [3.7 MB] || from_moon_360p30.mp4 (640x360) [967.9 KB] || ", "hits": 177 }, { "id": 4349, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4349/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-08-28T18:00:00-04:00", "title": "Supermoon Eclipse 2015", "description": "The geometry of the Moon's orbit in motion, from the end of August until the supermoon eclipse on September 27-28, 2015. The inner blue circle shows perigee distance, the outer blue circle shows apogee distance, and the off-center, light gray circle shows the Moon's orbit. Frame sequences with alpha channel are available for the separate elements of the animation.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. || moon.0600_print.jpg (1024x576) [68.6 KB] || moon.0600_searchweb.png (180x320) [35.4 KB] || moon.0600_thm.png (80x40) [4.8 KB] || supermoon_1080p30.mp4 (1920x1080) [4.1 MB] || supermoon_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [2.4 MB] || fancy (1920x1080) [0 Item(s)] || moon_earth (1920x1080) [0 Item(s)] || orbit (1920x1080) [0 Item(s)] || supermoon_720p30.webm (1280x720) [2.2 MB] || supermoon_360p30.mp4 (640x360) [1.0 MB] || 320x320_1x1_30p (320x320) [0 Item(s)] || 360x230_36x23_30p (360x230) [0 Item(s)] || ", "hits": 146 }, { "id": 4340, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4340/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-08-18T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "September 27, 2015 Total Lunar Eclipse: Shadow View", "description": "Universal Time (UT). The Moon moves right to left, passing through the penumbra and umbra, leaving in its wake an eclipse diagram with the times at various stages of the eclipse. || eclipse_ut_print.jpg (1024x576) [58.4 KB] || eclipse.0432_searchweb.png (180x320) [40.3 KB] || eclipse.0432_thm.png (80x40) [4.0 KB] || eclipse_ut_1080p30.mp4 (1920x1080) [3.0 MB] || eclipse_ut_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [1.6 MB] || ut (1920x1080) [0 Item(s)] || eclipse_ut_720p30.webm (1280x720) [1.9 MB] || eclipse_ut_360p30.mp4 (640x360) [597.1 KB] || eclipse_ut_4340.key [4.3 MB] || eclipse_ut_4340.pptx [1.9 MB] || ", "hits": 121 }, { "id": 4310, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4310/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-05-01T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Moon Phases Loop", "description": "A looping animation showing a complete cycle of average lunar phases. || moon.0060_print.jpg (1024x576) [57.1 KB] || moon.0060_searchweb.png (320x180) [33.1 KB] || moon.0060_thm.png (80x40) [3.1 KB] || moon_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [1.5 MB] || moon_1080p30.mp4 (1920x1080) [3.4 MB] || 1920x1080_16x9_30p (1920x1080) [16.0 KB] || moon_720p30.webm (1280x720) [873.0 KB] || moon_2160p30.mp4 (3840x2160) [11.6 MB] || moon_360p30.mp4 (640x360) [401.5 KB] || 5760x3240_16x9_30p (5760x3240) [16.0 KB] || moon_1080p30_4310.pptx [3.9 MB] || moon_1080p30_4310.key [6.3 MB] || ", "hits": 1302 }, { "id": 4242, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4242/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-03-17T14:00:00-04:00", "title": "March 17, 2013 Lunar Impact Forms a New Crater", "description": "Artist's conception of the March 17, 2013 lunar impact as seen from near the impact site in Mare Imbrium.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. || impactb.0172_print.jpg (1024x576) [43.7 KB] || impactb.0172_searchweb.png (320x180) [39.8 KB] || impactb.0172_thm.png (80x40) [3.6 KB] || from_moon_720p30.webmhd.webm (960x540) [249.9 KB] || from_moon_1080p30.mp4 (1920x1080) [629.5 KB] || from_moon_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [298.3 KB] || from_moon (1920x1080) [0 Item(s)] || from_moon_360p30.mp4 (640x360) [100.4 KB] || from_moon_4242.key [2.8 MB] || from_moon_4242.pptx [390.9 KB] || ", "hits": 200 }, { "id": 4275, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4275/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2015-03-13T09:00:00-04:00", "title": "The Total Solar Eclipse of 20 March 2015", "description": "This narrated video shows visualizations of the March 20, 2015 solar eclipse from several vantage points in space, as well as an actual photo of a previous eclipse in 2012 taken by LRO from lunar orbit. Transcript. || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_print.jpg (1024x576) [96.1 KB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_searchweb.png (320x180) [60.2 KB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_thm.png (80x40) [5.0 KB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_youtube_hq.mov (1280x720) [35.7 MB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_1280x720.wmv (1280x720) [50.0 MB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_prores.mov (1280x720) [1.5 GB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_appletv.m4v (960x540) [46.5 MB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_appletv.webm (960x540) [14.4 MB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_appletv_subtitles.m4v (960x540) [46.5 MB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_nasaportal.mov (640x360) [34.1 MB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_ipod_lg.m4v (640x360) [20.0 MB] || Shadow.en_US.srt [1.9 KB] || G2015-026_ShadowOfTheMoon_ipod_sm.mp4 (320x240) [9.1 MB] || ", "hits": 102 }, { "id": 4236, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4236/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-12-09T06:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2015", "description": " || New: Click on the image to download a high-resolution version with labels for craters near the terminator. The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [92.5 KB] || comp.0001.tif (1920x1080) [2.5 MB] || ", "hits": 127 }, { "id": 4193, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4193/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-08-08T09:00:00-04:00", "title": "Supermoon 2014", "description": "On August 10, 2014, the Moon will be full at the same time that it is closest to Earth for the year. This coincidence is sometimes called a supermoon.The Moon's orbit is very slightly elliptical and therefore somewhat off-center relative to the Earth. Each month, the Moon passes through points in its orbit called perigee and apogee, the closest and farthest points from the Earth for that month. Some perigees are a little closer than others. The closest perigee for 2014 occurs on August 10 at around 17:49 Universal Time, when the Moon will be 356,896 kilometers (221,765 miles) away. As it happens, this is only a few minutes before the time of peak full Moon at 18:10 UT, when the Moon's ecliptic longitude differs from the Sun's by exactly 180 degrees.How often does this happen? The period between perigees, called the anomalistic month, is 27.55 days, on average, while the time between Full Moons, called the synodic month, is 29.53 days. These two periods sync up every 413 days, or 1.13 years. 15 anomalistic months are about as long as 14 synodic months, so that's how often the pattern repeats.Recently, a much broader definition of \"supermoon\" has taken hold. It includes both Full and New Moons, and perigee merely needs to be \"close enough,\" generally within a couple of days. By this definition, there are six or seven supermoons every year, half of which can't be observed. Not so super!The actual shape of the Moon's orbit is another source of confusion. The orbit is often depicted as an almost cigar-shaped ellipse, but this is a misleading exaggeration. If you were to draw the orbit on a sheet of paper, its deviation from a perfect circle would be less than the thickness of your pencil point. The 50,000 kilometer (30,000 mile) difference between perigee and apogee is almost entirely due to the orbit being off-center. The difference between the semimajor and semiminor axes is less than 1000 kilometers (600 miles).The animation begins in mid-July, showing that perigee and Full Moon miss each other by about a day. It then shows apogee on July 28, when the Moon is almost 32 Earth diameters away. It ends on August 10, the day of the supermoon, when the distance to the Moon is 28 Earth diameters. The Moon graphic in the upper left shows the change in the Moon's apparent size as it moves closer and farther in its orbit. (The relative sizes of the Earth and Moon in the main orbit graphic are exaggerated by a factor of 15 to make them more easily visible.) || ", "hits": 140 }, { "id": 4185, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4185/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-07-18T09:00:00-04:00", "title": "A New Look at the Apollo 11 Landing Site", "description": "Apollo 11 landed on the Moon on July 20th, 1969, a little after 4:00 in the afternoon Eastern Daylight Time. The Lunar Module, nicknamed Eagle and flown by Neil Armstrong and Edwin \"Buzz\" Aldrin, touched down near the southern rim of the Sea of Tranquility, one of the large, dark basins that contribute to the Man in the Moon visible from Earth. Armstrong and Aldrin spent about two hours outside the LM setting up experiments and collecting samples. At one point, Armstrong ventured east of the LM to examine a small crater, dubbed Little West, that he'd flown over just before landing.The trails of disturbed regolith created by the astronauts' boots are still clearly visible in photographs of the landing site taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) narrow-angle camera (LROC) more than four decades later.LROC imagery makes it possible to visit the landing site in a whole new way by flying around a three-dimensional model of the site. LROC scientists created the digital elevation model using a stereo pair of images. Each image in the pair shows the site from a slightly different angle, allowing sophisticated software to infer the shape of the terrain, similar to the way that left and right eye views are combined in the brain to produce the perception of depth.The animator draped an LROC photograph over the terrain model. He also added a 3D model of the LM descent stage—the real LM in the photograph looks oddly flat when viewed at an oblique angle.Although the area around the site is relatively flat by lunar standards, West Crater (the big brother of the crater visited by Armstrong) appears in dramatic relief near the eastern edge of the terrain model. Ejecta from West comprises the boulders that Armstrong had to avoid as he searched for a safe landing site.Apollo 11 was the first of six increasingly ambitious crewed lunar landings. The exploration of the lunar surface by the Apollo astronauts, when combined with the wealth of remote sensing data now being returned by LRO, continues to inform our understanding of our nearest neighbor in space. || ", "hits": 917 }, { "id": 4156, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4156/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-04-10T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO and the Lunar Eclipse of April 15, 2014: Telescopic View", "description": "|| || eclipse.0001.jpg (730x730) [104.6 KB] || eclipse.0001.tif (1920x1080) [2.5 MB] ||", "hits": 70 }, { "id": 4157, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4157/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-04-10T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Lunar Eclipse of April 15, 2014 As Viewed from the Moon", "description": "In the early morning hours of April 15, 2014, the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse. When viewed from the Moon, as in this animation, the Earth hides the Sun. A red ring, the sum of all Earth’s sunrises and sunsets, lines the Earth’s limb and casts a ruddy light on the lunar landscape. With the darkness of the eclipse, the stars come out.The city lights of North and South America are visible on the night side of the Earth. The part of the Earth visible in this animation is the part where the lunar eclipse can be seen. || ", "hits": 236 }, { "id": 4158, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4158/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-04-10T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Lunar Eclipses and the Moon's Orbit", "description": "The animations on this page illustrate the Moon’s orbit and its role in lunar and solar eclipses. A solar eclipse happens when the Moon’s shadow falls on the Earth, while a lunar eclipse happens when the Earth’s shadow falls on the Moon.Eclipses can only happen at New and Full Moon, when the Earth, Moon, and Sun are all in a straight line. But they don’t happen every New and Full Moon, because the Moon’s orbit is tilted by about 5 degrees. As the Earth and Moon travel around the Sun, the tilt of the Moon’s orbit changes direction relative to the Sun.This is analogous to the way the tilt of the Earth causes seasons. Just like winter and summer happen every six months, eclipses tend to occur on a roughly six-month cycle.Unlike most eclipse shadow diagrams, the first three animations here don’t greatly exaggerate the scale of the Earth and Moon. They are only 2x their true scale. The view is exactly perpendicular to the Earth-Sun line. The angle of the Moon’s orbital tilt and the “tapering” of the shadows are both accurate. The orbit happens to be calculated for the months preceding the April 15, 2014 total lunar eclipse. || ", "hits": 808 }, { "id": 4155, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4155/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2014-04-07T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO and the Lunar Eclipse of April 15, 2014: Shadow View", "description": "In the early morning hours of April 15, 2014, the Moon enters the Earth’s shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse, the first of four that are visible in the Western Hemisphere in the next two years. This animation shows the changing appearance of the Moon as it travels into and out of the Earth’s shadow, along with the times at various stages. Versions of the animation have been created for each of the four time zones of the contiguous United States.All of North and South America will see this eclipse, and you won’t need special equipment to see it. Just stay up late, go outside and look up!The penumbra is the part of the Earth’s shadow where the Sun is only partially covered by the Earth. The umbra is where the Sun is completely hidden.The animation includes the position of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft. LRO is powered by sunlight, but during the eclipse, it will have to rely on its battery for almost three hours. || ", "hits": 121 }, { "id": 4129, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4129/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-12-20T10:00:00-05:00", "title": "Earthrise: The 45th Anniversary", "description": "In December of 1968, the crew of Apollo 8 became the first people to leave our home planet and travel to another body in space. But as crew members Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders all later recalled, the most important thing they discovered was Earth.Using photo mosaics and elevation data from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), this video commemorates the 45th anniversary of Apollo 8's historic flight by recreating the moment when the crew first saw and photographed the Earth rising from behind the Moon. Narrator Andrew Chaikin, author of A Man on the Moon, sets the scene for a three-minute visualization of the view from both inside and outside the spacecraft accompanied by the onboard audio of the astronauts.The visualization draws on numerous historical sources, including the actual cloud pattern on Earth from the ESSA-7 satellite and dozens of photographs taken by Apollo 8, and it reveals new, historically significant information about the Earthrise photographs. It has not been widely known, for example, that the spacecraft was rolling when the photos were taken, and that it was this roll that brought the Earth into view. The visualization establishes the precise timing of the roll and, for the first time ever, identifies which window each photograph was taken from.The key to the new work is a set of vertical stereo photographs taken by a camera mounted in the Command Module's rendezvous window and pointing straight down onto the lunar surface. It automatically photographed the surface every 20 seconds. By registering each photograph to a model of the terrain based on LRO data, the orientation of the spacecraft can be precisely determined.Andrew Chaikin's article Who Took the Legendary Earthrise Photo From Apollo 8? appeared in the January, 2018 issue of Smithsonian magazine. It includes the story of the making of this visualization.A Google Hangout discussion of this visualization between Ernie Wright (creator of the visualization), Andrew Chaikin, John Keller (LRO project scientist), and Aries Keck (NASA media specialist) was held on December 20, 2013. A replay of that hangout is available here.Ernie Wright presented a talk about the making of this animation at the 2014 SIGGRAPH Conference in Vancouver. He also wrote a NASA Wavelength blog entry about Earthrise that includes links to educator resources related to LRO. || ", "hits": 581 }, { "id": 4118, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4118/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-12-06T00:01:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2014", "description": " || The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [27.9 KB] || comp.0001.tif (1920x1080) [1.5 MB] || ", "hits": 114 }, { "id": 4119, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4119/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-12-06T00:01:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2014 South Up", "description": " || The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [27.7 KB] || comp.0001.tif (1920x1080) [1.5 MB] || ", "hits": 63 }, { "id": 4084, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4084/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-06-21T01:00:00-04:00", "title": "Supermoon 2013", "description": "On June 23, 2013, the Moon will be full at the same time that it is closest to Earth for the year. This coincidence is sometimes called a supermoon.The Moon's orbit is slightly elliptical and therefore a little off-center relative to the Earth. Each month, the Moon passes through points in its orbit called perigee and apogee, the closest and farthest points from the Earth for that month. Some perigees are a little closer than others. The closest perigee for 2013 occurs on June 23 at around 11:18 Universal Time, when the Moon will be 356,991 kilometers (221,824 miles) away. As it happens, this is only a few minutes before the time of peak full Moon at 11:32 UT, when the Moon's ecliptic longitude differs from the Sun's by exactly 180 degrees.How often does this happen? The period between perigees, called the anomalistic month, is 27.55 days. The time between full Moons, called the synodic month, is 29.53 days. These two periods sync up every 413 days, or 1.13 years. 15 anomalistic months are about as long as 14 synodic months. So that's how often the pattern repeats.The animation begins in May, showing that perigee and full Moon miss each other by about a day. It then shows apogee on June 9, when the Moon is almost 32 Earth diameters away. It ends on June 23, the day of the supermoon, when the distance to the Moon is 28 Earth diameters. The Moon graphic in the upper left shows the change in the Moon's apparent size as it moves closer and farther in its orbit. (The relative sizes of the Earth and Moon in the main orbit graphic are exaggerated by a factor of 15 to make them more easily visible.)By another coincidence, the supermoon occurs just two days after the northern summer solstice, when the Sun reaches its highest point in the northern hemisphere sky. The second animation shows the relationship between the Sun and the Earth at both the summer and winter solstice. || ", "hits": 135 }, { "id": 4067, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4067/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-06-05T11:00:00-04:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2013 South Up", "description": " || The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0002.jpg (730x730) [94.7 KB] || comp.0001.tif (1920x1080) [2.3 MB] || ", "hits": 249 }, { "id": 4057, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4057/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-03-25T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LEND Looks for Water at the South Pole", "description": "Since Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) entered lunar orbit in 2009, its neutron detector, LEND, has been counting the neutrons coming from the Moon's surface.Neutrons are created when galactic cosmic rays strike atoms in the lunar regolith. These neutrons bounce from atom to atom like billiard balls, losing energy with each collision. Along the way, some of these neutrons escape into space, where LEND can detect them.The presence of hydrogen in the lunar soil reduces the number of neutrons that escape. To map out likely deposits of water ice, LEND scientists look for this deficit of neutrons in the epithermal (medium) energy range.If the deficit were simply due to random fluctuations, the hydrogen map would never coalesce into a sharp image, but as this animation shows, the map of epithermal neutron deficit at the south pole of the Moon improves over time and converges on particular spots. These include especially strong signals in the permanently shadowed parts of Cabeus and Shoemaker craters, where ice would be completely shielded from the sun. But LEND and other missions have found signs of water in places that aren't permanently shadowed while apparently excluding some places that are, both of which are surprising and exciting discoveries. || ", "hits": 228 }, { "id": 4054, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4054/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-03-19T13:00:00-04:00", "title": "LAMP Observes GRAIL Impact", "description": "The Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission comprised a pair of satellites that together measured the gravity field of the Moon. GRAIL ended its mission with a planned impact into the side of a lunar mountain on December 17, 2012. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) maneuvered into an orbit that would allow it to observe the impact. One of LRO's instruments, the Lyman-Alpha Mapping Project (LAMP), looked for the chemical signatures of a number of elements, including hydrogen and mercury, in the dust plume kicked up by the impact.This animation shows the relative positions of GRAIL and LRO at the time of the impact, as well as the view from LAMP as it scanned for the dust plume. The LAMP sensor is a 6.0° x 0.3° slit that was positioned to look over the limb of the Moon, so that it would be pointed into the tenuous dust plume with only the sky in the background. This observation was possible, in part, because GRAIL impacted on the night side of the Moon, where there was no concern that LAMP's sensitive detector could be blinded by sunlit terrain. From Earth, the Moon was a waxing crescent at the time of the impact. || ", "hits": 31 }, { "id": 4043, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4043/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2013-03-06T11:00:00-05:00", "title": "LRO Peers into Permanent Shadows", "description": "The Moon's permanently shadowed regions, or PSRs, are places on the Moon that haven't seen the Sun in millions, or even billions, of years. The Earth's tilted axis allows sunlight to fall everywhere on its surface, even at the poles, for at least part of the year. But the Moon's tilt relative to the Sun is only 1.6°, not enough to get sunlight into some deep craters near the lunar north and south poles. PSRs are therefore some of the coldest, darkest places in the solar system.Because of that, PSRs are expected to be excellent traps for volatiles, chemicals that would normally vaporize and escape into space, and this includes water. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) includes several instruments designed to peer into the PSR darkness and measure temperature, reflectivity, and neutron absorption, all of which are clues to what chemicals might be hiding there. This animation shows where the PSRs are and in what ways LRO can see inside them. || ", "hits": 411 }, { "id": 4000, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4000/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2012-11-20T12:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2013", "description": " || The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0002.jpg (730x730) [94.6 KB] || comp.0001.tif (1920x1080) [2.3 MB] || ", "hits": 297 }, { "id": 3959, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3959/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2012-09-27T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "RXTE Views X-ray Pulsar Occulted by the Moon", "description": "On Oct. 13, 2010, NASA's Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE), a satellite in low-Earth orbit, observed a bursting X-ray pulsar as it was eclipsed by the Moon. This provided scientists with an unusual opportunity to calculate the precise position of the pulsar by timing its disappearance and reappearance at the edge of the Moon's disk.The story began a few days earlier, on Oct. 10, when the European Space Agency's INTEGRAL satellite detected a transient X-ray source in the direction of Terzan 5, a globular star cluster about 25,000 light-years away toward the constellation Sagittarius. This was the start of an extradordinary series of outbursts that ended Nov. 19. The object, dubbed IGR J17480-2446, is classed as a low-mass X-ray binary system, where a neutron star orbits a star much like the Sun and draws a stream of matter from it. As only the second bright X-ray source to be found in Terzan 5, scientists shortened the name of the system to T5X2. As shown in this animation, ingress (the moment when the pulsar disappeared) occurred on the Moon's eastern limb just above the equator. Egress, 8 minutes 32 seconds later, was near the south pole on the western limb. The timing of ingress and egress depended delicately on the shape of the terrain. In other words, it mattered whether the pulsar passed behind a mountain or a valley. So the calculation relied on the detailed topography measured by both JAXA's Kaguya and NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.The animation faithfully reproduces the angle of the Sun, the position of RXTE, the position and orientation of the Moon as seen from the satellite, the Moon's topography, and the starry background. RXTE's position was derived from the Goddard Flight Dynamics Facility ephemeris for day 6129 of the satellite's orbit, while the Sun and Moon positions came from JPL's DE421 solar system ephemeris. All of the positions and the viewing direction were transformed into Moon body-fixed coordinates, so that in the animation software, the Moon remained stationary at the origin, while the camera moved and pointed appropriately. The Moon, the stars, the pulsar, and the clock were all rendered separately and layered together. || ", "hits": 927 }, { "id": 3936, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3936/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2012-04-19T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Earthrise", "description": "The famous color photograph known as Earthrise, as well as a black-and-white image taken a minute earlier, document the moment when Earth was seen for the first time by human eyes from behind the Moon. They were taken on December 24, 1968 by the crew of Apollo 8, the first humans to leave low Earth orbit.The sight of a small, intensely blue Earth rising above the barren, gray horizon of the Moon was one of the few things that NASA and the crew of Apollo 8 had not thoroughly planned and rehearsed beforehand. As historian Robert Poole noted, this lack of preparation meant that the sight of Earth came with the force of a revelation, not just for the astronauts but for everyone on the ground. We came all this way to explore the Moon, Apollo 8 astronaut Bill Anders said, and the most important thing is that we discovered the Earth.Using the latest elevation data from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, this visualization attempts to recreate what the astronauts saw. The virtual camera of the rendering software is put in the position of the Apollo 8 spacecraft at the time of the photographs, as the spacecraft emerged from its fourth pass behind the Moon. It shows a two-minute interval centered on 16:39:06 UT (10:39 a.m. Houston time) on December 24, 1968. This is around the time of AOS (acquisition of signal), the moment when radio contact is re-established after being lost on the far side of the Moon.The position and motion of the spacecraft are based on a state vector, a set of (x, y, z) position and (vx, vy, vz) velocity values, published in NASA's Apollo 8 Mission Report about a year after the flight. The animator translated these values, given in Moon-centered inertial coordinates for Besselian year 1969.0, into a modern coordinate system, then calculated an orbit. The spacecraft was 110 km (68 miles, 60 nautical miles) above the surface of the Moon at 11.2°S 113.8°E when the Earthrise photograph was taken. || ", "hits": 421 }, { "id": 3917, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3917/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2012-03-15T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Hyperwall: Three Moon Sites", "description": "Using elevation data returned by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), these hyperwall-resolution animations visit three prominent features on the Moon's near side. || ", "hits": 120 }, { "id": 3909, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3909/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2012-03-14T11:00:00-04:00", "title": "Tour of the Moon: Additional Footage", "description": "This is additional footage produced for the narrated version of Tour of the Moon. It supplements the visualizations in entry 3874. || ", "hits": 140 }, { "id": 10929, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10929/", "result_type": "Produced Video", "release_date": "2012-03-14T10:00:00-04:00", "title": "A Narrated Tour of the Moon", "description": "Although the moon has remained largely unchanged during human history, our understanding of it and how it has evolved over time has evolved dramatically. Thanks to new measurements, we have new and unprecedented views of its surface, along with new insight into how it and other rocky planets in our solar system came to look the way they do. See some of the sights and learn more about the moon here! || ", "hits": 70 }, { "id": 3894, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3894/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2012-01-01T00:00:00-05:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2012", "description": " || The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [67.4 KB] || moon.0001.tif (1920x1080) [1.1 MB] || ", "hits": 423 }, { "id": 3874, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3874/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-10-27T06:00:00-04:00", "title": "Tour of the Moon", "description": "Using elevation and image data returned by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), this animation takes the viewer on a virtual tour of the Moon. The tour visits a number of interesting sites chosen to illustrate a wide variety of lunar terrain features. Some are on the near side and are familiar to both professional and amateur observers on Earth, while others can only be seen clearly from space. Some are large and old (Orientale, South Pole-Aitken), others are smaller and younger (Tycho, Aristarchus). Constantly shadowed areas near the poles are hard to photograph but easier to measure with altimetry, while several of the Apollo landing sites, all relatively near the equator, have been imaged at resolutions as high as 25 centimeters (10 inches) per pixel.The shape of the terrain in this animation is based primarily on data from LRO's laser altimeter (LOLA), supplemented by stereo image data from its wide angle camera (LROC WAC) and from Japan's Kaguya mission. The global surface color is from Clementine. || ", "hits": 348 }, { "id": 3866, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3866/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-10-06T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LOLA Footprints II", "description": "LOLA, the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft, is an instrument for measuring the altitude of the Moon's terrain. As LRO orbits the Moon, LOLA bounces laser light off the lunar surface 28 times per second. An array of five sensors arranged in an X-shape detects the reflected light. The amount of time it takes the light to travel to the surface and back to the sensors tells the instrument how far away the surface is. Over time, LOLA builds up a complete elevation map of the Moon.This animation illustrates how the X-shaped LOLA sensor footprint travels over the lunar surface. The LOLA data track is taken from LRO orbit number 1155, on September 27, 2009, as the spacecraft passed over Amundsen crater near the lunar south pole. It begins with a distant view showing the entire crater, then switches to a view near the surface that chases the laser pulses over the central peak and across the floor of this large crater. Through most of the movie, the laser pulses are shown racing across the surface at actual speed, but at one point, the pace is slowed so that the viewer can see the sensor pattern of each individual laser pulse.The imagery of the ground view is a high-resolution photograph taken by the LRO narrow-angle camera at the same time this LOLA data track was being recorded. The shape of the terrain in all of the views is taken from LOLA elevation maps. All of this data is publicly available from the Planetary Data System's LRO archive.This is a new and improved version of entry #3758. || ", "hits": 112 }, { "id": 3836, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3836/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-06-29T13:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO at the June 15, 2011 Lunar Eclipse: View from the Moon", "description": "For Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the lunar eclipse on June 15, 2011 is likely to be the longest and darkest of its life. This matters because LRO relies on sunlight to power its systems and instruments. Although it spends half of every orbit on the night side of the Moon, each night side pass lasts only an hour. For the June 15 eclipse, LRO will be in the dark for more than twice as long.During a previous total eclipse, LRO hibernated, turning off all of its instruments to conserve its battery power until the Moon emerged from the Earth's shadow. For the June 15 event, LRO will leave on the Diviner Lunar Radiometry Experiment. Diviner will measure the cooling of the Moon's surface during the eclipse. This unique temperature record is expected to reveal information about the roughness and composition of the swath of lunar surface visible to Diviner's sensors during the eclipse.The visualization archived on this page shows the view of the eclipse from the Moon, looking back toward the Earth and the Sun. On the Moon, this event is a solar eclipse. As the Sun disappears behind the Earth, the umbral shadow sweeps across the lunar landscape, and as our eyes adjust to the darkness, the stars come out, and the lunar surface looks a dull red. The atmosphere of the Earth lights up as a red ring around the planet, the sunrises and sunsets all around the edge of the globe lending their faint light to the Moon while the Sun is otherwise blocked. At the start of the eclipse, Australia is facing us, but over time, the Moon sets in eastern Australia while southern Africa rotates into view. LRO streaks through the frame several times on its orbit 50 kilometers above the Moon's surface.Other visualizations in this series depict the view of the eclipsealong the shadow line, with the figures of the umbra, penumbra, and lunar and solar pathsthrough a telescope on Earthflying above LRO as Diviner takes temperature measurementsA narrated piece that uses these visualizations is available in entry #10794. For an explanation of lunar eclipses, visit entry #10787. || ", "hits": 114 }, { "id": 3810, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3810/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-06-13T09:00:00-04:00", "title": "Moon Phase and Libration, 2011", "description": " || The data in the table for the entire year can be downloaded as a JSON file or as a text file. || moon.0001.jpg (730x730) [36.2 KB] || moon.0001.tif (1920x1080) [852.2 KB] || ", "hits": 574 }, { "id": 3833, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3833/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-06-13T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO at the June 15, 2011 Lunar Eclipse: Shadow View", "description": "For Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the lunar eclipse on June 15, 2011 is likely to be the longest and darkest of its life. This matters because LRO relies on sunlight to power its systems and instruments. Although it spends half of every orbit on the night side of the Moon, each night side pass lasts only an hour. For the June 15 eclipse, LRO will be in the dark for more than twice as long.During a previous total eclipse, LRO hibernated, turning off all of its instruments to conserve its battery power until the Moon emerged from the Earth's shadow. For the June 15 event, LRO will leave on the Diviner Lunar Radiometry Experiment. Diviner will measure the cooling of the Moon's surface during the eclipse. This unique temperature record is expected to reveal information about the roughness and composition of the swath of lunar surface visible to Diviner's sensors during the eclipse.The visualization archived on this page shows the view of the eclipse along the axis of the Earth's shadow, with the figures of the umbra, penumbra, and lunar and solar paths in the background. This is the view typically used in eclipse diagrams like those produced by Fred Espenak for the NASA Eclipse site.Other visualizations in this series depict the view of the eclipsefrom the Moon, where the event is a solar eclipsethrough a telescope on Earthflying above LRO as Diviner takes temperature measurementsA narrated piece that uses these visualizations is available in entry #10794. For an explanation of lunar eclipses, visit entry #10787. || ", "hits": 34 }, { "id": 3834, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3834/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-06-13T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO at the June 15, 2011 Lunar Eclipse: Earth View", "description": "For Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the lunar eclipse on June 15, 2011 is likely to be the longest and darkest of its life. This matters because LRO relies on sunlight to power its systems and instruments. Although it spends half of every orbit on the night side of the Moon, each night side pass lasts only an hour. For the June 15 eclipse, LRO will be in the dark for more than twice as long.During a previous total eclipse, LRO hibernated, turning off all of its instruments to conserve its battery power until the Moon emerged from the Earth's shadow. For the June 15 event, LRO will leave on the Diviner Lunar Radiometry Experiment. Diviner will measure the cooling of the Moon's surface during the eclipse. This unique temperature record is expected to reveal information about the roughness and composition of the swath of lunar surface visible to Diviner's sensors during the eclipse.The visualization archived on this page shows the eclipse as it might appear through a telescope on Earth (except that you can't see LRO in such a telescope). Celestial north is up. As the Moon enters the umbra (the part of the shadow in which the Sun is completely blocked by the Earth), the shadowed side of the Moon appears black while the sunlit side remains bright. Only when the Moon is almost completely within the umbra is it possible to see the faint red glow of the shadowed side, some 10,000 times fainter than the sunlit Moon. The redness is sunlight filtered and refracted by Earth's atmosphere. The same effect reddens sunrises and sunsets on Earth.Other visualizations in this series depict the view of the eclipsefrom the Moon, where the event is a solar eclipsealong the shadow line, with the figures of the umbra, penumbra, and lunar and solar pathsflying above LRO as Diviner takes temperature measurementsA narrated piece that uses these visualizations is available in entry #10794. For an explanation of lunar eclipses, visit entry #10787. || ", "hits": 68 }, { "id": 3835, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3835/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2011-06-13T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO's Diviner during the June 15, 2011 Lunar Eclipse", "description": "For Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), the lunar eclipse on June 15, 2011 is likely to be the longest and darkest of its life. This matters because LRO relies on sunlight to power its systems and instruments. Although it spends half of every orbit on the night side of the Moon, each night side pass lasts only an hour. For the June 15 eclipse, LRO will be in the dark for more than twice as long.During a previous total eclipse, LRO hibernated, turning off all of its instruments to conserve its battery power until the Moon emerged from the Earth's shadow. For the June 15 event, LRO will leave on the Diviner Lunar Radiometry Experiment. Diviner will measure the cooling of the Moon's surface during the eclipse. This unique temperature record is expected to reveal information about the roughness and composition of the swath of lunar surface visible to Diviner's sensors during the eclipse.The visualization archived on this page shows LRO flying over the lunar surface during the darkest part of the eclipse, with Diviner measuring temperatures along a swath about 3.5 kilometers wide. LRO will pass this part of the surface again during the eclipse, and it will tilt a bit so that Diviner can point at the same strip of lunar surface. The difference between the two temperature readings gives the rate of cooling at each point along the swath.Other visualizations in this series depict the view of the eclipsefrom the Moon, where the event is a solar eclipsealong the shadow line, with the figures of the umbra, penumbra, and lunar and solar pathsthrough a telescope on EarthA narrated piece that uses these visualizations is in entry #10794. For an explanation of lunar eclipses, visit entry #10787. || ", "hits": 83 }, { "id": 10787, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10787/", "result_type": "Produced Video", "release_date": "2011-06-08T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Lunar Eclipse Essentials", "description": "When the moon passes through the Earth's shadow, it causes the moon to look very unusual for a short period of time. This event is called a lunar eclipse, and it occurs roughly twice a year. Learn more about how lunar eclipses work in this video!These videos and animations are available in both standard formats as well as stereoscopic 3D for those who can view it. We've included left and right eye clips, a side-by-side version, and an anaglyph (red/blue) version of the narrated video, and left and right eye clips for each of the animations. The labels next to each link will help you pick! || ", "hits": 468 }, { "id": 3760, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3760/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-10-21T13:55:00-04:00", "title": "LRO Supports LCROSS", "description": "Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) were launched together on the same Atlas V rocket on June 18, 2009. Months later, after following very different paths to the moon, LRO and LCROSS met once more. LCROSS struck the floor of Cabeus crater, near the south pole of the moon, at 11:31 UT on October 9, 2009. LRO witnessed the impact from its orbit 50 kilometers (30 miles) above the surface.The purpose of the crash was to create a plume of debris that could be examined for the presence of water and other chemicals in the lunar regolith. LRO's early reconnaissance of the moon gave LCROSS mission planners valuable data in the months before LCROSS arrived, allowing them to choose an impact site with a high probability of producing interesting findings. LRO was also there for the event itself, using its array of instruments to gather data in the aftermath of the impact.This animation shows LRO and LCROSS from 5 minutes before to 5 minutes after the impact. Data gathered before the impact is represented by early results from LRO's Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector (LEND). LEND can sense hydrogen, and therefore possible water, in the lunar soil. The area of high hydrogen concentration in Cabeus (purple) is like a bullseye for LCROSS.Data gathered by LRO after the impact is represented by Diviner temperature measurements taken seconds after the crash. Diviner detected the heat from lunar soil melted and vaporized by the enormous energy of the impact. || ", "hits": 56 }, { "id": 3785, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3785/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-10-21T13:55:00-04:00", "title": "LAMP Observes the LCROSS Impact", "description": "A two-ton Atlas Centaur rocket body, part of the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), struck the floor of Cabeus crater, near the south pole of the moon, at 11:31 UT on October 9, 2009. The purpose of the crash was to create a plume of debris that could be examined for the presence of water and other chemicals in the lunar regolith.The Lyman-Alpha Mapping Project (LAMP) instrument aboard Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) observed the tenuous vapor cloud created by the LCROSS impact. LAMP is LRO's \"night vision.\" Most of the time, it uses the ultraviolet light in starlight to peer into deep shadows on the moon's surface. For the LCROSS impact, LAMP was pointed just above the lunar horizon to watch for the arrival of a rapidly expanding cloud of vaporized debris from the crash.In this animation, the viewer looks down the LAMP boresight and through its narrow window. The LAMP sensor lights up as the leading edge of the expanding vapor cloud passes through its field of view. What's shown here is actually the difference between the data recorded after the LCROSS impact and that recorded on LRO's previous orbit. See this entry for more about the process of subtracting the background to enhance the LAMP signal. || ", "hits": 44 }, { "id": 3662, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3662/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-09-16T14:00:00-04:00", "title": "Counting Craters on the Moon", "description": "Craters light up in an east to west (Tranquillitatis toward Orientale) sweep around the Moon.This video is also available on our YouTube channel. || crater_count.0900.jpg (1280x720) [160.5 KB] || crater_count.0900_web.png (320x180) [52.4 KB] || crater_count.0900_thm.png (80x40) [4.2 KB] || crater_count.mp4 (1280x720) [6.4 MB] || crater_count_720p.m2v (1280x720) [53.8 MB] || 1280x720_16x9_30p (1280x720) [64.0 KB] || crater_count.webmhd.webm (960x540) [6.8 MB] || crater_count_cbar_720p30.mp4 (1280x720) [8.3 MB] || crater_count_512x288.m1v (512x288) [9.8 MB] || a003662_320.m1v (320x180) [4.0 MB] || ", "hits": 391 }, { "id": 3758, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3758/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-09-16T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LOLA Footprints", "description": "A more recent version of this animation can be found here.LOLA, the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter aboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft, is an instrument for measuring the altitude of the Moon's terrain. As LRO orbits the Moon, LOLA bounces laser light off the lunar surface 28 times per second. An array of five sensors arranged in an X-shape detects the reflected light. The amount of time it takes the light to travel to the surface and back to the sensors tells the instrument how far away the surface is. Over time, LOLA builds up a complete elevation map of the Moon.This animation illustrates how the X-shaped LOLA sensor footprint travels over the lunar surface. The LOLA data track is taken from LRO orbit number 1155, on September 27, 2009, as the spacecraft passed over Amundsen crater near the lunar south pole. It begins with a distant view showing the entire crater, then switches to a view near the surface that chases the laser pulses over the central peak and across the floor of this large crater. Through most of the movie, the laser pulses are shown racing across the surface at actual speed, but at one point, the pace is slowed so that the viewer can see the sensor pattern of each individual laser pulse.The imagery of the ground view is a high-resolution photograph taken by the LRO narrow-angle camera at the same time this LOLA data track was being recorded. The shape of the terrain in all of the views is taken from LOLA elevation maps. All of this data is publicly available from the Planetary Data System's LRO archive. || ", "hits": 212 }, { "id": 3730, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3730/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-06-22T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Lunar Topography: ULCN versus LOLA", "description": "This animation illustrates the dramatic improvement in our knowledge of the Moon's terrain made possible by the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) instrument onboard the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft. A LOLA digital elevation map compiled in late 2009 is compared to the Unified Lunar Control Network (ULCN) 2005, a painstakingly constructed map based on the best available data at the time, including imagery from the Clementine, Apollo, Mariner 10, and Galileo missions as well as Earth-based observations.The height of the terrain is color-coded, with blues and greens representing low altitudes and reds representing high altitudes. The LOLA data used to create this media is available to the public in the LOLA archive of the PDS Geosciences node. || ", "hits": 346 }, { "id": 3731, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3731/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-06-21T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LOLA: Lunar Topography in Natural Color", "description": "This animation is a brief tour of several prominent features of the Moon's terrain: Tycho crater, the south pole, and the South Pole-Aitken basin. It is match-moved to a companion piece showing the terrain elevations in false color.This is an update of animation 3594, which was produced before the launch of Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Except for the Tycho crater inset, the elevation map in this updated version is based entirely on early results of the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter onboard LRO.The surface appearance is derived from photographs taken by the Clementine spacecraft. Although it shows the visible surface in natural color, this animation does not depict realistic sunlight and shadows. This is especially significant near the poles, where certain parts of the terrain can be in permanent shadow and would never be fully visible in the manner depicted here. || ", "hits": 235 }, { "id": 3727, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3727/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-06-11T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LOLA Lunar Topography in False Color", "description": "This animation is a brief tour of several prominent features of the Moon's terrain: Tycho crater, the south pole, and the South Pole-Aitken basin. The height of the terrain is color-coded, with blues and greens representing low altitudes and reds representing high altitudes. The view is match-moved to a companion piece showing the Moon in natural colors.This is an update of animation 3582, which was produced before the launch of Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Except for the Tycho crater inset, the elevation map in this updated version is based entirely on early results of the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter onboard LRO. These results already represent a substantial improvement in our knowledge of the Moon's topography. || ", "hits": 158 }, { "id": 3690, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3690/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-03-28T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Releases Data to the Planetary Data System", "description": "On March 15, 2010, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) released its first installment of scientific data to NASA's public archive for planetary data, the Planetary Data System (PDS). This animation highlights several of the datasets made available through the PDS by the LOLA, LEND, and Diviner instruments on LRO. || ", "hits": 109 }, { "id": 3686, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3686/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2010-03-15T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO/LOLA Lunar South Pole Flyover", "description": "The Lunar Reconnaissance Oribiter (LRO) was launched on June 18, 2009. Its mission is to map the moon's surface, find safe landing sites, locate potential resources, characterize the radiation environment, and demonstrate new technology. One of the instruments on board is the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) which measures landing site slopes, lunar surface roughness, and has begun generation of a high resolution 3D map of the Moon.This visualization uses Clementine data for the global view of the moon, but then transitions to using only LRO/LOLA DEM with a neutral gray texture when flying around the lunar south pole. The DEM by itself creates an amazingly realistic view of the lunar southpole. As better maps are created from the other instruments aboard LRO, an even clearer picture of the moon will emerge.Please note that this visualization is match-frame rendered to The Moon's South Pole in 3D via LRO/LOLA First Light Data (#3633). || ", "hits": 141 }, { "id": 3634, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3634/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2009-09-17T12:00:00-04:00", "title": "Shackleton's Rim Through the Eyes of LRO/LROC", "description": "During the Lunar Reconnaissance Oribiter's (LRO) Commissioning Phase, the high resolution Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) on the LRO Camera (LROC) instrument captured this 0.8-meter per pixel scale (angular resolution) two-image mosaic of Shackleton Crater on the moon's south pole. Many more images of this area will be obtained by the NAC over the coming months as the lunar south pole emerges from the shadows of winter. At meter scales, the geology of this region reminds us that the polar regions of the Moon are still waiting to be explored. The rim of Shackleton crater is a prime candidate for future human exploration due to its proximity to permanently shadowed regions and nearby peaks that are illuminated for much of the year.Last year, Japan's Selene and India's Chandrayaan spacecraft gave us our first high resolution look at the lunar south pole, which includes Shackleton crater. For its size, Shackleton has an exceptionally deep and rugged interior. Usually craters fill in with time as their walls slump and material from afar is thrown in by distant impacts. Much of Shackleton's rim appears rounded and is peppered with smaller craters, indications of a relatively ancient age. Right now it is not clear if Shackleton crater is relatively old or young. This NAC image reveals a shelf on the southeast flank of the crater that is more than two kilometers across and perfectly suitable for a future landing. The extreme Sun angle exaggerates the apparent roughness, however if you look closely at this scale any area that is between small craters could be good candidates for a potential landing site. || ", "hits": 150 }, { "id": 3633, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3633/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2009-09-16T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "The Moon's South Pole in 3D via LRO/LOLA First Light Data", "description": "The Lunar Reconnaissance Oribiter (LRO) was launched on June 18, 2009. Its mission is to map the moon's surface, find safe landing sites, locate potential resources, characterize the radiation environment, and demonstrate new technology. One of the instruments on board is the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) which measures landing site slopes, lunar surface roughness, and has begun generation of a high resolution 3D map of the Moon. The animation depicted here is the beginning of LOLA's mapping project and shows the lunar south pole through digital elevation map data collected by the LOLA instrument during the spacecraft commissioning phase. During the commissioning phase, LRO was in a highly elliptical orbit coming closer to the lunar south pole than the north pole. Furthermore, since LOLA uses laser pulses to measure the surface, the accuracy of its measurements are greatly affected by the instrument's distance to the surface. This is why there is virtually no data of the lunar north pole, and much better coverage of the south pole. The topographic data shown here is currently processed to show at approximately 30 meters per pixel.The colors in this animation depict the relative heights of the lunar surface with respect to the surface mean. Warm colors (brown, red, magenta, and tan) indicate areas above the mean. Cooler colors (green, cyan, blue, and violet) are areas below the mean. || ", "hits": 179 }, { "id": 3620, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3620/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2009-07-16T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Apollo Landing Sites, with Shadows", "description": "The six Apollo lunar landing sites are all relatively near the equator on the side of the Moon that faces the Earth. Left behind at each site is the lower half of the Lunar Module, called the descent stage. It carried most of the astronauts' supplies and served as the launchpad for their return trip to the Command and Service Module in orbit around the Moon.LROC, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, will have a number of opportunities to photograph the Apollo landing sites. Despite the excellent half-meter resolution of LROC's narrow angle cameras, the LM descent stage at each site can fill only a few pixels of these images. If photographed when the Sun is low in the lunar sky, however, the long shadow formed by the descent stage is easily discernable.This brief animation shows the locations of the Apollo landing sites, with lengthening shadows as each site approaches lunar nightfall. The lighting simulates the angle of the Sun during the second week of July, 2009, when LROC took its first images of the sites. The gold LM markers are about 20,000 times actual size. || ", "hits": 392 }, { "id": 3612, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3612/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2009-05-08T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Orbit Insertion", "description": "This visualization shows an example of how the orbit insertion for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) might look. LRO launches from Cape Canaveral, then flies around the Earth and on to the moon. Time speeds up during the journey to the moon, then slows again as LRO approaches the moon. LRO begins orbiting the moon and, through a series of several \"burns\", moves in closer to its desired orbit. LRO's initial orbit plane around the moon is parallel to the direction of the moon's travel.This visualization was created before launch using simulated ephemeris data. The ephemeris data driving this visualization was based on a simulated nighttime launch on 11/24/2008; but, the actual launch may happen during the daytime.A stereoscopic version of this visualization can be found HERE. For more information on the coodinate systems in the animation see HERE. || ", "hits": 129 }, { "id": 3587, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3587/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2009-03-24T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO Scouts for Safe Landing Sites - Stereoscopic Version", "description": "The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is NASA's scouting mission to prepare for a return to the moon. One of its primary objectives will be to assess the lunar terrain for areas that would provide safe landing sites for future missions, both manned and unmanned, that plan to touch down on the moon's surface. This video helps explain how LRO will accomplish its objective.This visualization is a modified 3D stereo version of animation entry:#10349: LRO Scouts for Safe Landing Sites.The raw stereoscopic visualization sequence used to create this narrated animation can be viewed and downloaded from entry: #3567: How LRO Will Find Safe Landing Sites on the Moon - Stereoscopic Version. || ", "hits": 84 }, { "id": 3567, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3567/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2009-01-27T00:00:00-05:00", "title": "How LRO Will Find Safe Landing Sites on the Moon - Stereoscopic Version", "description": "The first attempt to land humans on the moon - Apollo 11 - was a triumph that almost ended in disaster. At just 400 feet from the lunar surface, with only about a minute's worth of fuel remaining, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin 'Buzz' Aldrin saw that their ship's computer was taking them directly into a crater the size of a football field, strewn with SUV-sized boulders. They quickly took control from the computer, flew over the crater and touched down in a smoother area beyond, cutting the engine with just 30 seconds of fuel left. In general, good landing sites need to be level and free from large boulders that could damage or tip the spacecraft as it attempts to land. And it's up to the Lunar Reconaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission to make those landings as safe as possible. Astronauts will want to avoid places with steep slopes that could tip the spacecraft, so LRO includes a laser ranging system that will build an elevation map to show the contours of the polar surface. The instrument, called the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA ), records the time it takes for a laser pulse to travel from the spacecraft to the lunar surface and back to calculate the height of the lunar terrain. After a year in orbit aboard LRO, LOLA will have created an elevation map of the polar regions that is accurate to within a half-meter (20 inches) vertically and 50 meters (about 160 feet) horizontally. LRO will also use data from another instrument that measures temperatures to double-check the safe zone map. Temperatures change more rapidly in areas with loose materials (lots of rocks). By analyzing how quickly temperatures change in potential landing zones, planners using the instrument, named Diviner, can rule out areas that appear smooth but actually are likely to be rocky. LRO also carries a pair of eagle-eyed cameras, called the Narrow Angle Cameras (NACs) which together can take images that reveal details as small as a half-meter (almost 20 inches) over swaths 10 kilometers (about 6.2 miles) wide. As LRO orbits over the poles, the moon rotates beneath the spacecraft, and the NACs will gradually build up a detailed picture of the region. It will be used to identify safe landing zones free of large boulders and craters, allowing astronauts to avoid surprises like Apollo 11. LRO is being assembled and managed by NASA Goddard, and is scheduled to be launched in early 2009. NASA plans to have astronauts back on the moon by 2020. As astronauts close in on a new landing site late in the next decade, they can thank NASA Goddard's small robot scout for showing the safest approach. This visualization is a modified stereoscopic version of: #3533: How LRO Will Find Safe Landing Sites on the Moon The modifications applied in the production of the stereoscopic visualization include: extension of the time range of the animation, color adjustments, scale bar and text overlay treatment.The crater depicted in this visualization is ficticious and only intended for illustrative purposes. The visualization begins with the reveal of a digital elevation map showing sample lunar topography illustrating the kind of data that LRO's LOLA instrument will collect. From this topographic data level surface areas can be derived as the first step to determining safe landing sites. Next, an example temperature map of the lunar surface is revealed to show the sort of data Diviner will collect. Changes in surface temperature will help determine small rock hazards, since they retain and release heat at a different rate than the surrounding regolith. Large rock hazards can be found with LROC's surface imagery. Finally, removing rock hazard areas from level surface areas reveals potential safe landing sites for future lunar missions.In this page the visualization content is offered in various modes to accomodate different types of stereoscopic viewing, such as: Left and Right Eye separate, and Left and Right Eye side-by-side combined on the same frame. || ", "hits": 172 }, { "id": 3533, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/3533/", "result_type": "Visualization", "release_date": "2008-09-02T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "How LRO Will Find Safe Landing Sites on the Moon (No Narration)", "description": "The first attempt to land humans on the moon - Apollo 11 - was a triumph that almost ended in disaster. At just 400 feet from the lunar surface, with only about a minute's worth of fuel remaining, astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin 'Buzz' Aldrin saw that their ship's computer was taking them directly into a crater the size of a football field, strewn with SUV-sized boulders. They quickly took control from the computer, flew over the crater and touched down in a smoother area beyond, cutting the engine with just 30 seconds of fuel left. In general, good landing sites need to be level and free from large boulders that could damage or tip the spacecraft as it attempts to land. And it's up to LRO to make those landings as safe as possible. Astronauts will want to avoid places with steep slopes that could tip the spacecraft, so LRO includes a laser ranging system that will build an elevation map to show the contours of the polar surface. The instrument, called the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA), records the time it takes for a laser pulse to travel from the spacecraft to the lunar surface and back to calculate the height of the lunar terrain. After a year in orbit aboard LRO, LOLA will have created an elevation map of the polar regions that is accurate to within a half-meter (20 inches) vertically and 50 meters (about 160 feet) horizontally. LRO will also use data from another instrument that measures temperatures to double-check the safe zone map. Temperatures change more rapidly in areas with loose materials (lots of rocks). By analyzing how quickly temperatures change in potential landing zones, planners using the instrument, named Diviner, can rule out areas that appear smooth but actually are likely to be rocky. LRO also carries a pair of eagle-eyed cameras, called the Narrow Angle Cameras (NACs) which together can take images that reveal details as small as a half-meter (almost 20 inches) over swaths 10 kilometers (about 6.2 miles) wide. As LRO orbits over the poles, the moon rotates beneath the spacecraft, and the NACs will gradually build up a detailed picture of the region. It will be used to identify safe landing zones free of large boulders and craters, allowing astronauts to avoid surprises like Apollo 11. LRO is scheduled to launch in 2009.For a 3D stereo version of this visualization, please visit animation #3567: How LRO Will Find Safe Landing Sites on the Moon - Stereoscopic versionFor a feature version of this visualization with narration and music, please visit Goddard Multimedia #10349: LRO Scouts for Safe Landing Sites || ", "hits": 147 }, { "id": 10334, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10334/", "result_type": "Produced Video", "release_date": "2008-08-15T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO/LCROSS Launch, Deploy, and Mission Animation", "description": "The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter or LRO will give scientists more information about the structure of the Moon's interior; the types of rock found there, events that shaped it, and the conditions that exist at the surface. LRO will spend one year in a polar orbit collecting this information. LRO's instrument suite will provide the highest resolution and the most comprehensive data set and the most detailed maps ever returned from the moon. It will carry an additional payload called LCROSS. The identification of water is very important to the future of human activities on the Moon. LCROSS will excavate the permanently dark floor of one of the Moon's polar craters with two heavy impactors to test the theory that ancient ice lies buried there. The impact will eject material from the crater's surface to create a plume that specialized instruments will be able to analyze for the presence of water (ice and vapor), hydrocarbons and hydrated material. || ", "hits": 107 }, { "id": 20140, "url": "https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/20140/", "result_type": "Animation", "release_date": "2008-06-07T00:00:00-04:00", "title": "LRO Spacecraft Animations", "description": "11 animations of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's (LRO) journey around the Moon. || ", "hits": 80 } ] }