An Abyss on the Moon

"This is the biggest, deepest crater on the Moon -- an abyss that could engulf the United States from the East Coast through Texas," said Noah Petro of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The impact punched into the layers of the lunar crust, scattering that material across the Moon and into space. The tremendous heat of the impact also melted part of the floor of the crater, turning it into a sea of molten rock.
That was just an opening shot. Asteroid bombardment over billions of years has left the lunar surface pockmarked with craters of all sizes, and covered with solidified lava, rubble, and dust. Glimpses of the original surface, or crust, are rare, and views into the deep crust are rarer still.
Fortunately, a crater on the edge of the South Pole-Aitken basin may provide just such a view. Called the Apollo Basin and formed by the later impact of a smaller asteroid, it still measures a respectable 300 miles across.
"It's like going into your basement and digging a deeper hole," said Petro. "We believe the central part of the Apollo Basin may expose a portion of the Moon's lower crust. If correct, this may be one of just a few places on the Moon where we have a view into the deep lunar crust, because it's not covered by volcanic material as many other such deep areas are. Just as geologists can reconstruct Earth's history by analyzing a cross-section of rock layers exposed by a canyon or a road cut, we can begin to understand the early lunar history by studying what's being revealed in Apollo."
Petro presents his result March 4 during the Lunar and Planetary Science meeting in Houston, Texas.
Petro and his team made the discovery with the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3), a NASA instrument on board India's Chandrayaan-1 lunar-orbiting spacecraft. Analysis of the light (spectra) in images from this instrument revealed that portions of the interior of Apollo have a similar composition to the impact melt in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) basin.
As you go deeper into the Moon, the crust contains minerals have greater amounts of iron. When the Moon first formed, it was largely molten. Minerals containing heavier elements, like iron, sank down toward the core, and minerals with lighter elements, like silicon, potassium, and sodium, floated to the top, forming the original lunar crust.
"The asteroid that created the SPA basin probably carved through the crust and perhaps into the upper mantle. The impact melt that solidified to form the central floor of SPA would have been a mixture of all those layers. We expect to see that it has slightly more iron than the bottom of Apollo, since it went deeper into the crust. This is what we found with M3. However, we also see that this area in Apollo has more iron than the surrounding lunar highlands, indicating Apollo has uncovered a layer of the lunar crust between what is typically seen on the surface and that in the deepest craters like SPA," said Petro.
The lower crust exposed by Apollo survived the impact that created SPA probably because it was on the edge of SPA, several hundred miles from where the impact occurred, according to Petro.
Both SPA and Apollo are estimated to be among the oldest lunar craters, based on the large number of smaller craters superimposed on top of them. As time passes, old craters get covered up with new ones, so a crater count provides a relative age; a crater riddled with additional craters is older than one that appears relatively clean, with few craters overlying it. As craters form, they break up the crust and form a regolith, a layer of broken up rock and dust, like a soil on the Earth.
Although the Apollo basin is ancient and covered with regolith, it still gives a useful view of the lower crust because the smaller meteorite impacts that create most of the regolith don't scatter material very far.
"Calculations of how the regolith forms indicate that at least 50 percent of the regolith is locally derived," said Petro. "So although what we're seeing with M3 has been ground up, it still mostly represents the lower crust."
It's likely Earth wasn't spared the abusive asteroid bombardment experienced by the Moon. Giant craters on other worlds across the solar system, including Mercury and Mars, indicate the rain from the heavens was widespread. However, on Earth, the record of these events was rubbed out long ago. The crust gets recycled by plate tectonics and weathered by wind and rain, erasing ancient impact craters.
"The Apollo and SPA basins give us a window into the earliest history of the Moon, and the Moon gives us a window into the violent youth of Earth," said Petro.

No Man Mission to Moon and Mars

The rumors were true, Constellation is cancelled. No Ares 1 crew vehicle, no Ares V heavy lifter, no Altair lander. No bases on the Moon , and no human exploration of Mars. NASA is canceling the human return to Moon.
But with NASA handling that "back to the Moon" thing, space advocates probably thought they could relax a little.I think that NASA has an enormous role to play in human space exploration. They have the ability to solve problems that private enterprise just doesn't have the funds for. Sure, NASA put a man on the Moon, but it's the trickle down technologies that we appreciate every day. Like velcro! NASA needs create the tools and technology that will enable a vibrant and healthy private space industry.
What's the best way to extract fuel from an astroid? How can ion engines cut down flight times? Is there a better way to make a spacesuit ? What are some good materials for space elevators? What are some safer rocket fuels? How can we make rocket launches better for the environment? Is there a way to make velcro better? They can do this through pure research, competitions, university grants, prizes, and private/government partnerships. They can team up with other governments to cut costs on the really big challenges.
And you know what's strange? They already do this with science. NASA listens to scientists to hear their greatest challenges. "We need to see through gas and dust to see star formation and protoplanetary disks" – here's Spitzer. "We need to see high energy regions around supermassive black holes" – that's Fermi. "We need to know if there's evidence of water on the surface of Mars" – that's Spirit and Opportunity. NASA does this so well with science? Why don't they answer questions and solve problems in the same way for space exploration? There are so many questions, and NASA can help point us in the right directions.

Moon’s deep hole will be used for Human settlement ?

A deep, giant hole on the moon could be suitable enough for setting up human colonies, say scientists who have recently discovered the protected “lava tube” on the lunar surface.
In a major discovery, geophysicists identified a vertical hole in the volcanic Marius Hills region on the moon’s near side.
The dark pit is 213-feet wide and is estimated to be more than 260-feet deep, the CNN quoted from the findings published in Geophysical Research Letters. A thin sheet of lava protects the hole from the moon’s harsh temperatures and meteorite strikes and makes the tube suitable for further exploration or possible inhabitation.Lava tubes have previously been discovered on the moon but scientists say the new hole is notable because of its lava shield and because it does not appear to be prone to collapse.
“Lunar lava tubes are a potentially important location for a future lunar base, whether for local exploration and development or as an outpost to serve exploration beyond the Moon,” writes the team, led by Junichi Haruyama, a senior researcher with the Japanese space agency JAXA.
“Any intact lava tube could serve as a shelter from the severe environment of the lunar surface, with its meteorite impacts, high-energy UV radiation and energetic particles, and extreme diurnal temperature variations.”The research was carried out using high-resolution images from a Japanese moon orbiter called SELENE.

A Blue Moon For New Year's Eve

When you hear someone say "Once in a Blue Moon" you know what they mean. They're usually talking about something rare, silly, and even absurd. After all, when was the last time you saw the moon turn blue? Well, rare or not, we're having one this month, and according to astronomer David Reneke from Australasian Science magazine, it's going to happen on New Year's Eve!
It's not at all clear where the term 'Blue Moon' comes from. It dates back at least 400 years. According to modern folklore, a Blue Moon is the second full Moon in a calendar month.
"Usually months have only one full moon, but occasionally a second one sneaks in, David said. "Earlier cultures around the world considered the second full moon to be spiritually significant."
Full moons are separated by 29 days, while most months are 30 or 31 days long; so it is possible to fit two full moons in a single month. This happens every two and a half years, on average. By the way, February is the only month that can never have a Blue Moon by this definition. This month features full moons on December 2 and December 31.
Does the blue Moon actually turn blue? No. Blue moons are rare, and that's where the phrase comes from, "once in a Blue Moon".
There are occasions though when pollution in the Earth's atmosphere can make the moon look particularly bluish. The extra dust scatters blue light.
For example, the Moon appeared blue across the entire Earth for about 2 years after the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883.There were also reports of blue moons caused by Mt. St. Helens in 1980 and Mount Pinatubo in 1991.
"A New Year's Eve like this year's one really does come around once in a blue moon," David said. "Look up at the sky on December 31 and see for yourself." For the first time since 1990, revellers will be able to ring in the New Year under the light of a Blue Moon. The next blue moon to occur on New Year's Eve will not happen until 2028.
"Blue Moons don't have any real significance scientifically but they're fun to look at,' David said." Anytime you can get people out to look at the real sky to me is a great plus, enjoy it while you can this New Year's Eve."

China To Launch Second Lunar Probe In 2010

China will launch its second lunar probe, Chang'e-2, in October 2010, a top Chinese space scientist told China Daily on Thursday. The newspaper quoted Ye Peijian, chief designer of the nation's first moon probe, as saying that the second lunar orbiter will carry different payloads and orbit the moon in a different way.
"It will orbit 100 km closer to the Moon
and be equipped with better facilities. We expect to acquire more scientific data about the moon with increased accuracy," he was quoted as saying.
Though Chang'e-2 was at one time the backup to Chang'e-1, it has gone through technical upgrades for its new mission. Payloads on board have been improved, and the vehicle now boasts a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera on board, which has a much higher resolution than the camera on China's first lunar probe.
Ouyang Ziyuan, chief scientist with China's lunar exploration team, said on Wednesday during an interview with People's Daily Online that systems on Chang'e-2 are undergoing "match-up and drills" and everything has gone well.
Tests will also be carried out during Chang'e-2's mission to prepare for the lunar-lander and rover, Ye was quoted as saying.
He also told the third International Conference on Space Information Technology in Beijing Thursday that the country's lunar-lander and rover, Chang'e-3, is also well on the way toward liftoff - the project is in the prototype stage and its launch is set for before 2013.
Chang'e-3, China's first lunar-lander and rover, is scheduled to be launched from a Long March 3B launch vehicle from the Xichang satellite launch center before 2013, Ye was quoted as saying.
At present, work on Chang'e-3 has gone beyond the planning stage and the machinery is now in the prototype stage.
The landing site on the moon for Chang'e-3 has also been chosen. Ye said it will be in the Sinus Iridium (Bay of Rainbows).
The scientific objectives of the project include investigating the lunar landscape and exploring the geological structure of the moon. The mission will also help China study the material composition of the moon and search for usable resources.
Chang'e-2 and Chang'e-3 are part of the second phase of China's lunar exploration program.
China launched its lunar mission in 2007 when it successfully put an unmanned probe, Chang'e-1, into lunar orbit. The spacecraft transmitted pictures of the moon's surface in January 2008.

Is There Life On The Moon ?

Scientists are looking for life in space. So far, they haven't found any life beyond Earth itself. We seem to be getting closer to discovering life somewhere else in our own solar system, with Mars, and some moons of Jupiter and Saturn being considered likely hiding spots for microbes..
Could there be life closer to our home planet? Probably not, but it's worth considering what could be lurking on the Moon. We've discovered evidence that the polar regions of the Moon are the coldest natural places in the solar system. It's not the sort of environment that's friendly to life. Anything that tried to survive there would certainly freeze. But what could these conditions preserve? Could the Moon be a storehouse of chemicals and structures that have disappeared from other regions of the solar system?
Part of the reason why we explore space is not only to discover life, but to find the precursors to life. Outer space holds the records of what conditions were like when the Earth was young, and life could have been getting started on our planet.
If certain regions on the Moon have been frozen for eons, the Moon could be one of our most promising areas for biotic chemistry research.
This material could have been deposited by comets impacting the Moon, or it could have developed locally through chemical processes. Exactly what we will find, and how it got there, are mysteries waiting to be solved.
Substances awaiting discovery could include organic molecules, amino acids or even crude lipid membranes that resemble the walls of living cells. Even something as simple as checking the chirality, or "left or right-handedness", of the arrangement of atoms in a molecule, could be significant.
Some lifeforms will use one form of a molecule, but cannot absorb the "mirror image" of the same molecule, even though it's really the same chemical.
Getting to this material won't be easy. It will take more than a simple rock scoop or drill to retrieve it, and preserve the material inside. We will need sensors that can perform in-situ analyses of the soil and the volatiles it contains (such as water). Similar instruments have already operated on the surface of Mars.
Some material may even need to be transported in a refrigerated state all the way back to Earth, a challenging task for any mission planner. Keeping the material free from contamination will also be important.
At the moment, most attention on the polar regions is focused on the search for water. The quest for astrobiology shouldn't be forgotten in future missions.

NASA hopes water mining on the Moon

NASA has long planned to mine water on the moon to supply human colonies and future space exploration. Now the discovery of small amounts of water across much of the lunar surface has shifted that vision into fast-forward, with the U.S. space agency pursuing several promising technologies.
A hydrogen reduction plant and lunar rover prospectors have already passed field tests on Hawaii's volcanic soil, and more radical microwave technology has shown that it may be used to extract Underground water ice. Water mined by these methods could not only keep astronauts supplied with a drink, but may also provide oxygen and fuel for lunar missions.
One probe, NASA's LCROSS spacecraft, is closing in on the moon's south pole and is expected to crash into a crater on Oct. 9 in another bid to find water ice hidden within the permanent shadows there.
Not just half-baked
NASA scientists have quietly worked on water mining technologies for years in small laboratories. But a full-blown program did not emerge until the latest vision for living off the land and using lunar resources emerged in 2004.
One promising technology takes advantage of the chemistry of the moon dirt - or regolith - by adding hydrogen, which then reacts with iron oxide in the moon dirt to produce water. Such hydrogen reduction reactors heat the regolith to about 1,832 degrees Fahrenheit (1,000 degrees Celsius) so that the proper chemical reactions can occur.
A process known as electrolysis can then split the extracted water into pure hydrogen and oxygen, either for rocket fuel or astronaut air supplies.
NASA has already tested a hydrogen reduction reactor on Hawaii's Mauna Kea Volcano. During a year-long operation, it produced 1,455 pounds (660 kg) of oxygen from a rocky soil containing 5 percent iron oxide. Now engineers have a second-generation system in the works that can produce 2,205 pounds (1,000 kg).
Moon, Mars or bust
Whatever the method, water-mining technology may prove ready sooner than NASA can return to the moon. The agency hopes to send astronauts back to the moon by the 2020s, but uncertainty over the manned Constellation program and the agency's future weighs heavily on the funding for these efforts, and how soon they might deploy.
Much also hinges on the fast-approaching LCROSS mission that aims to crash into the moon with two impactors. That could tell scientists how much more water ice lies hidden within craters near the lunar poles, and help fill in some of the unknowns.

Get ready for amazing Moon Impact Experiment on 9th Oct.

The measurements come from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which launched in June.The satellite's temperature sensor, DIVINER, measures the amount of emitted and reflected radiation given off by the surface. LRO has a number of other instruments designed to map properties such as topography and neutron levels – another possible indicator of water.In July, the satellite sent back pictures of the Apollo landing sites to commemorate the 40th anniversary of humans on the moon. On Thursday, LRO's primary mission began to collect data that could be used to plan a possible return to the moon.The temperature finding raises hopes that NASA's other current lunar satellite mission, LCROSS, the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, will find evidence of water when it crashes into a crater near the moon's south pole on 9 October.

The Coldest Place in our Solar System - Moon

Poor Pluto. First it gets kicked out of the planet club, now it's not even the coldest place in the solar system. Dark craters near the moon's south pole have snatched that title – which is good news for the prospects of finding water ice on Earth's companion.The craters' towering rims block the sun from reaching their centres, like the long shadows cast by tall buildings at dusk. In this permanent darkness, they stay at a constant -240 °Celsius – more than 30 °C above absolute zero and 10 °C cooler than Pluto, which was measured at -230 °C in 2006."The lunar south pole is among the coldest parts of the solar system and may be in fact colder than what we expect from places like Pluto," NASA scientist Richard Vondrak said at a press conference on Thursday.The cold temperature bodes well for the prospect of finding water ice deposits in the moon's shadowy pockets. Previous calculations had shown that water and other volatile gases would dissipate into space at temperatures above about -220 °C.