Moon Exploration and Science News

November 28, 2012

Cassini Finds a Video Gamers' Paradise at Saturn
Pasadena CA (JPL) Nov 27, 2012
You could call this "Pac-Man, the Sequel." Scientists with NASA's Cassini mission have spotted a second feature shaped like the 1980s video game icon in the Saturn system, this time on the moon Tethys. (The first was found on Mimas in 2010). The pattern appears in thermal data obtained by Cassini's composite infrared spectrometer, with warmer areas making up the Pac-Man shape. "Finding a second Pac-Man in the Saturn system tells us that the processes creating these Pac-Men are more widespread than ... read more

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Fly me to the universe In the eye of Ouyang Ziyuan, Chinese will not only explore the moon and Mars, but the sun, Venus and Jupiter, as well. "I wish we could travel further away," said Ouyang, chief scientist of Ch ... more		Meteorite samples provide definitive evidence of water and rock types on Mars Researchers at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, NASA's Johnson Space Center, Lunar Planetary Institute, and Carnegie Institute of Washington report on geochemical studies that help towards settlin ... more		China's Chang'e-3 to land on moon next year China will launch its latest lunar satellite in the second half of next year, the Chang'e-3, paving the way for a future manned moon landing, a senior space industry official said on Saturday. ... more
				Obama Win Keeps NASA's Space Plans on Course The reelection of US president Barack Obama could mean one small step back to the moon and a giant leap to landing astronauts on Mars and asteroids. In 2010, the Obama administration set a goa ... more		A New Technique to Protect Astronauts from Space Radiation The complexities of traveling to and working in space present challenges to astronauts that NASA scientists and engineers have been working on since Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin first stepped on t ... more

Moon crater yields impact clues NASA scientists say an almost perfectly preserved crater on the moon should yield clues to the evolution of impact craters on Earth and other rocky bodies. ... more		Dawn Sees "Young" Surface on Giant Asteroid Like a Hollywood starlet constantly retouching her makeup, the giant asteroid Vesta is constantly stirring its outermost layer to present a young face. Data from NASA's Dawn mission show that a form ... more		With Trump mum, last US-Russia nuclear pact set to end India budget pledges record infrastructure and defence boost Lockheed ramps up THAAD interceptor output with new framework deal and Camden facility		Study: Moon basin formed by giant impact A flattened 1,800-mile-wide section of the moon was likely caused by a collision with an asteroid the size of Austria, Japanese researchers say. ... more
				China unveils large radio telescope in Shanghai A massive radio telescope for use in space observation was unveiled Sunday at the foot of Sheshan Mountain in Shanghai. The telescope will be used to track and collect data from satellites and space ... more		NASA's LADEE Spacecraft Gets Final Science Instrument Installed Engineers at NASAs Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., have installed the third and final science instrument that will fly onboard NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LAD ... more

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Astrium presents results of its study into automatic landing near the Moon's south pole What technologies are needed to ensure a safe, accurate Moon landing and in-situ lunar research? Astrium is currently investigating this question in Lunar Lander studies for the European Space Agenc ... more		Monitoring Io's Insane Volcanic Activity from the Comfort of Earth Watching active volcanic eruptions should definitely be done from a distance, but a group of California researchers has figured out how to do it from the comfort of home. Using an ingenious combinat ... more		Sentinel 1 maps reveal flexible crust beneath Tibetan Plateau Stable water tables help wetlands curb methane emissions Rock microbes reveal hidden groundwater carbon engine		European mission to search for moon water A European mission to the moon will search for signs of water that could allow future astronauts to set up habitats on its surface, scientists say. ... more
				Proof at last: Moon was created in giant smashup It's a big claim, but Washington University in St. Louis planetary scientist Frederic Moynier says his group has discovered evidence that the Moon was born in a flaming blaze of glory when a body th ... more		Massive planetary collision may have zapped key elements from moon Fresh examinations of lunar rocks gathered by Apollo mission astronauts have yielded new insights about the moon's chemical makeup as well as clues about the giant impacts that may have shaped the e ... more

NASA monitors massive dust storm on Mars

Fostering Curiosity: Mars Express relays rocky images

Intrigue from Mars, or Grotzinger's silence

Cassini Finds a Video Gamers' Paradise at Saturn

Cassini Halloween Treat: Titan Glows in the Dark

Saturn's giant storm reveals the planet's churning atmosphere

Dwarf planet Makemake lacks atmosphere

Keck Observations Bring Weather Of Uranus Into Sharp Focus

At Pluto, Moons and Debris May Be Hazardous to New Horizons Spacecraft During Flyby

China's Chang'e-3 to land on moon next year

Moon crater yields impact clues

Study: Moon basin formed by giant impact

	Giant impact scenario may explain the unusual moons of Saturn Among the oddities of the outer solar system are the middle-sized moons of Saturn, a half-dozen icy bodies dwarfed by Saturn's massive moon Titan. According to a new model for the origin of the Satu ... more		Model reconciles Lunar Earth composition with giant impact theory The giant impact believed to have formed the Earth-Moon system has long been accepted as canon. However, a major challenge to the theory has been that the Earth and Moon have identical oxygen isotop ... more		Giant smashup created the Moon, say scientists A chemical quirk found in lunar soil backs a 37-year-old theory that the Moon was born from an apocalyptic collision between Earth and a huge space rock, scientists said on Wednesday. ... more		What's Baking on Titan? Radar images from NASA's Cassini spacecraft reveal some new curiosities on the surface of Saturn's mysterious moon Titan, including a nearly circular feature that resembles a giant hot cross bun and ... more

US contract vehicle to speed US made defense semiconductors into military systems

Equities and precious metals rebound after Asia-wide rout

Physicists predict significant growth for cadmium telluride photovoltaics

University of Tennessee study confirms solar wind as source for moon water		UNH scientists provide window on space radiation hazards		Solar wind particles likely source of water locked inside lunar soils		Moon water could have solar source: study		Russia to launch lunar mission in 2015
Rover designed to drill for moon ice		Russian moon mission said funded, ready		ChangE-2 Mission To Lagrange L2 Point		Navigating the Seas of Titan		Amateur Astronomer Maps the Surface of Ganymede

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