NASA watches Duel Lunar Impacts Today

A rocket's upper stage and a NASA spacecraft made craters of their own upon the Moon this morning as the space agency begins a strong search for signs of water on the Lunar surface.

The LCROSS satellite and it's launch booster Centaur slammed into the south pole of the Moon today just four minutes apart beginning with the Centaur at 7:31 am EDT. The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) then crashed into the Cabeus crater at 7:35:35 am.

The NASA image above was take by LCROSS two minutes before it's own demise of the Cabeus crater.

NASA has begun a new era in the exploration of the Moon as humankind works toward it's return with a new set of footprints after 2020.

The LRO was 50 KM over head of the impact regions in lunar orbit taking images. Meanwhile, the Edwin Hubble Space Telescope was also trained on the impacts as it orbited earth 350 miles above earth.

NASA satellite & booster to impact Moon Friday

A NASA Lunar observation satellite and it's booster rocket will leave their orbit around the Moon and make pinpoint crashes as the space agency looks for signs of ice in the shadows of a crater.

The double impact early on Friday morning will see the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) and it's Atlas-Centaur upper stage booster slam into the crater Cabeus near the Moon's south pole.

Beginning at 7:30 am EDT tomorrow, the Centaur booster will take the plunge first as it hits the shadows of the crater and, as NASA states, creating "10 billion joules of kinetic energy into a blinding flash of heat and light".

LCROSS will be focused on the 4,850 pound Centaur as it provides Live TV of the first impact.

LCROSS will then move in and fly through the Lunar plume of dust and rock photographing and scanning for any form of moisture, as NASA looks for signs of ice in the minus 250 degree shadows.

Four minutes following the first impact, the 1,543 pound LCROSS will begin it's own crash landing into the same crater creating a smaller size plume of lunar soil.

Meanwhile, NASA will have the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and Edwin Hubble Space Telescope photographing the first and second Lunar impacts from their postions between the earth and the Moon.

Tony Colaprete, the Lunar mission's investigator stated days ago, "We've just learned that Cabeus may contain relatively-rich deposits of hydrogen and-or frozen water. Cabeus is not as close to the lunar limb as we would have liked, but it seems to offer us the best chance of hitting H2O."

Here on Earth, astronomers will have their own telescopes trained on the Lunar impacts a few hours before the events begin.

Look for the Moon, which will be 82% full, to be high above the horizon at the impact times.

SpaceLaunchNews.com will have LIVE TV beginning at 6:14 am EDT on Friday. Follow our updates via Twitter @SpaceLaunchNews.

Read my LRO-LCROSS mission stories from 2009.

NASA's LRO enters Lunar Orbit This Morning

NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter entered our moon's orbit this morning, beginning a year long period of imaging the lunar surface for possible manned landing sites as America returns to the moon in 2020.

At 6:27 am EDT today, LRO entered lunar orbit. Over the next few days, according to NASA's Ames Research Center, the spacecraft will begin powering up its instruments and imager and begin to lower its orbit slightly to begin mapping operations.

Meanwhile, several thousand miles behind is the Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite or LCROSS. Both LRO & LCROSS were launched together aboard an Atlas V last Thursday from Cape Canaveral. LCROSS is towing the Atlas' spent centaur upper stage to the moon and will crash it into a dark crater near the moon's south pole. The plume of lunar dirt kicked up by the centaur's impact will allow LCROSS to fly through it to chemically measure for any water or ice make up in the soil.

We are awaiting possible LIVE television from LCROSS at about 8:20 am EDT.

SLN VIDEO: Atlas V LRO-LCROSS Launch Today

Atlas V Launches at 5:32 pm EDT today. NASA-TV

America Returns to the Moon

A pair of NASA satellites are heading toward earth's moon in hopes making better detailed maps and continuing the investigation into the search for water on the Lunar surface.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V departed Launch Complex 41 here at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 5:32 pm EDT, today. Launch came at the end of a twenty minute launch window due to the threat of bad weather across central Florida.

The two satellites called LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) and LCROSS (Lunar CRater Observation & Sensing Satellite) will begin a multi month mission. LRO will map in high resolution the Lunar surface as NASA works to select a landing sight for a possible 2020 manned landing.

Meanwhile, LCROSS will haul the Atlas' centaur upper stage to Lunar orbit. For four months, LCROSS will swing around the moon before releasing centaur and allowing it to crash into a dark crater at the south pole. When the lunar dust is kicked up from the impact, LCROSS will swing through looking at the chemical make up the soil.

At 6:16 pm, the LRO seperated from the centaur upper stage and flew away from the LCROSS/centaur duo. NASA's Ames Research Center has also taken control of the mission, with the LRO expected to first arrive early on Tuesday morning.

NASA to Launch Lunar Satellites Today

NASA will launch a pair of satellites toward earth's moon late today in hopes making better maps and investigating the search for water on the Lunar surface.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V will depart Launch Complex 41 here at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 5:22 pm EDT today. Two more one minute launch windows follow at 5:22 and 5:32 pm also.

Weather is only 60% forecast GO for today due to late day thunderstorm build up.

The two satellites called LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) and LCROSS (Lunar CRater Observation & Sensing Satellite) will begin a multi month mission. LRO will map in high resolution the Lunar surface as NASA works to select a landing sight for a possible 2020 manned landing.

Meanwhile, LCROSS will haul the Atlas' centaur upper stage to Lunar orbit. For four months, LCROSS will swing around the moon before releasing centaur and allowing it to crash into a dark crater at the south pole. When the lunar dust is kicked up from the impact, LCROSS will swing through looking at the chemical make up the soil.

NASA will be looking for signs of moisture in the lunar dust which had been sitting quietly in a dark crater for millions of years.

About five minutes after centaur crashes, LCROSS will also make it's impact of the mission as it crashes into the lunar surface this October.

The two impacts will have NASA turn the newly refurbished Edwin Hubble Space Telescope and several earth based telescopes aimed at the lunar south pole to record the plume.

NASA's Ames Research Center will over see the mission, including the instrumentation.