GRAIL A and B will map the moon's gravity, making their way there in an economical way in a 3.5 month orbit
Last Saturday, September 10, a rocket was launched from Cape Canaveral carrying two spacecraft called GRAIL (Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory) that will orbit the moon. The spacecraft began a journey of three and a half months from Earth to the Moon, which they will reach towards the first day of 2012.
The launch of the spaceships, which cost 496 million dollars, is the last planned launch of United Launch Alliance's Delta II launchers, and the last launched from Launch Facility No. 17 at Cape Canaveral. It was Delta's 365th launch since the first in 1960 and the 110th and final launch of a Delta 2 rocket from Florida.
One minute after launch, the six solid fuel launchers completed their mission and separated from the first stage. Minutes later, the three engines of the missile itself were ignited.
GRAIL's main scientific mission, which will last 82 days, will try to determine the structure of the Moon's interior from the crust to the core, and advance our understanding of the thermal evolution of the Moon and adapt it to the knowledge about the thermal evolution of the other rocky bodies in the Solar System.
On video: GRAIL spacecraft launch on September 10 from Cape Canaveral for a mission to explore the moon in unprecedented detail
9 תגובות
Thanks for the quote, Yossi. The link to the relevant post is this:
http://nicecriticalmass.blogspot.com/2011/09/blog-post_08.html
to "responder"
What exactly are you missing in my answer to Moshe?
If you are interested in knowing more about the economical journey, I quote from here:
http://nicecriticalmass.blogspot.com/
"You may wonder why it takes almost three months to reach the moon, while in the Apollo program, for example, they reached the moon in three days. The explanation is simple - in the Apollo program there were people who had to be kept alive, so time was a very important factor. In more robotic tasks, it is important to lower the price of the project, and one of the most important principles in the entire aviation world is to reduce the weight as much as possible, because it is a very expensive effort to raise things up.
Therefore, in order to save the fuel that the spacecraft has to take with it, it is sent on a "fuel-efficient" route, which always means a long duration. In the Grail mission, the spacecraft are sent towards the sun. At a distance of almost 1.5 million kilometers from the Earth, they perform a small maneuver that will cause them to return in our direction, and at an appropriate timing so that the moon's gravity will trap them."
More about the purpose of the study here:
http://www.iba.org.il/bet/?entity=785253&type=1
There is no way they are investing all this money to "advance our understanding of the thermal evolution of the Moon and adapt it to the knowledge of the thermal evolution of the other rocky bodies in the solar system." - I didn't buy this explanation!
In my opinion they are simply looking for exotic minerals (like Helium 9) that would justify building a mine there...NASA needs cash.
And that someone will answer "Moshe" because his question is very interesting to me!
Adi
I'm sure you have a good reason for the harsh words.
At the same time, "Hidan" is a long-standing website whose goal is to spread science among the Hebrew-speaking public.
I would soften the tone if only because of the higher purpose.
Of course, if a person feels that this or that article does not provide information, one can ask, and usually get an answer.
To Yossi
Better one bird in the hand than two birds on the tree.
to me
Anyone who rejects Momo is a reject.
To Moses
NASA is trying to save and accordingly will be the propulsion method to reach the moon (there is no pressure here to send people and bring them back).
The spacecraft will circle the moon and examine its gravitational field in detail.
About the project:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/grail/main/index.html
The announcement (on the "Hidan" website from 2007):
https://www.hayadan.org.il/nasa-announces-a-new-gravity-field-mission-to-the-moon-1412078/
An Israeli who photographed the launch from a plane:
http://www.fresh.co.il/vBulletin/showthread.php?t=550236#post4086372
This site is turning from a science site to a popular carving site. I think so anyway.
Something is not clear to me, how is it possible that their journey to the moon will last 3 and a half months, when the Apollo 11 spacecraft made the same journey in only 3 days?
Another thing, it's a shame there isn't even a minimal detail about the title, how are they supposed to explore the center of the moon? Are they supposed to land on it and drill into it to the center? (Of course not) How exactly is this supposed to be done? A very basic explanation is missing.