Category Archives: The Moon

Misc: Chinese lunar lander preped; Late Veneer or not; Better NEO finding; More bucks for VASIMR documentary

September 22, 2013 TopSpacer

A diverse array of unconnected items that have built up in my posting queue:

The Chinese preparations for their first lunar lander is progressing towards a launch this year: Chang’e-3 lunar probe sent to launch site – China.org.cn
Clues to how the early earth was formed come from gold in the crust and in meteorites but they don’t settle the argument in favor of the “Late Veneer” model: Does gold come from outer space? – BBC
The rate at which small asteroids are discovered may soon shoot up, so to speak: “Synthetic Tracking” Set to Revolutionise Near-Earth Asteroid Discovery — The Physics arXiv Blog
Ad Astra Rocket Company raised more than twice the target for its crowdfunding campaign to pay for development of a high production quality documentary video to explain its VASIMR propulsion technology: Animating VASIMR®: The Future of Spaceflight by Ad Astra Rocket Company — Kickstarte

LADEE overcomes start-up glitch

September 7, 2013 TopSpacer

NASA’s LADEE science probe had a problem with its reaction wheels shortly after the launch by the Minotaur V last night (see earlier post), but it doesn’t look too serious:

The local area enjoyed the launch: VA SHORE LAUNCH: One small step for space exploration, one giant leap for a region – The Daily Times/delmarvanow.com

Update: More about the flight and the reaction wheel issue: Minotaur Launch Report | Moon mission blasts off, overcomes pointing problem – Spaceflight Now

Events, Rockets, The Moon

Night launch of Minotaur V with lunar probe

September 7, 2013 TopSpacer 3 Comments

1:15 am ET/Sept.7.13: This fact sheet from Emily Lakdawalla outlines the tasks for LADEE in the coming days and months. It will actually do several burns to get into the lunar orbit to begin its science mission: LADEE prelaunch facts – The Planetary Society.

11:59 pm ET: Success! Congratulations to the Orbital team for sending the LADEE spacecraft on the start of its journey to the Moon. LADEE will later fire its own on-board engine to complete the trip. NASA has been able to contact the spacecraft.

9:57 pm ET: The countdown is going well for the launch of the Orbital Sciences five-stage Minotaur V rocket from Wallops Island Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS) on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. (See earlier post.) Liftoff is expected at 11:27 p.m. EDT. The rocket will send NASA’s LADEE science probe to orbit the Moon.

Updates on the launch status can be found here:

[ Update: Here is a video of the launch:

]

Rockets, SpaceCasts, The Moon

Minotaur V launch of lunar probe to be visible in wide area

September 5, 2013 TopSpacer 1 Comment

On Friday night at at approximately 11:27 p.m. EDT, Orbital Sciences will launch a five-stage Minotaur V rocket from the Wallops Island spaceport on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. It will send NASA’s LADEE science probe to orbit the Moon: Orbital Set to Launch NASA’s LADEE Lunar Orbiter Aboard Minotaur V Rocket.

The launch will be webcast on NASA TV but if you are in a region from South Carolina to Maine and inland as far as West Virginia, you may see at least a portion of the launch. Check the Launch visibility map.

Updates on the launch status can be found here: Minotaur Launch Report | Mission Status Center – Spaceflight Now.

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