Moon

Here’s Why We Should Put a Gravitational Wave Observatory on the Moon

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Scientists detected the first long-predicted gravitational wave in 2015, and since then, researchers have been hungering for better detectors. But the Earth is warm and seismically noisy, and that will always limit the effectiveness of Earth-based detectors. Is the Moon the right place for a new gravitational wave observatory? It might be. Sending telescopes into …

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There are Four Ways to Build with Regolith on the Moon

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Over the last few years I have been renovating my home. Building on Earth seems to be a fairly well understood process, after all we have many different materials to chose from. But what about future lunar explorers. As we head closer toward a permanent lunar base, astronauts will have very limited cargo carrying capability …

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Artemis Astronauts Will Deploy New Seismometers on the Moon

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Back in the 1960s and 1970s, Apollo astronauts set up a collection of lunar seismometers to detect possible Moon quakes. These instruments monitored lunar activity for eight years and gave planetary scientists an indirect glimpse into the Moon’s interior. Now, researchers are developing new methods for lunar quake detection techniques and technologies. If all goes …

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NASA unveils three teams to compete for crewed lunar rover demonstration mission

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NASA awarded contracts for three companies and their teams to move into the feasibility phase of developing options for a Lunar Terrain Vehicle (LTV). Renderings: Intuitive Machines, Lunar Outpost, Astrolab NASA selected three companies to move forward with developing crewed, unpressurized rovers capable of operating on the Moon’s South Pole on Wednesday. Intuitive Machine’s Moon …

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Live coverage: Intuitive Machines aims to become first commercial lander to safely reach the Moon

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Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander named Odysseus cruises over the near side of the Moon on Feb. 21, 2024, a day ahead of its scheduled landing attempt. Image: Intuitive Machines In a day not seen since the Dec. 11, 1972, a lander built in the United States could safely reach the surface of the Moon. Houston-based …

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Intuitive Machines’ Moon lander Odysseus reaches lunar orbit

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A image of Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander named ‘Odysseus’ captured by one of the spacecraft’s onboard cameras. Image: Intuitive Machines Achieving a successful lunar landing becomes increasingly more tangible for the team at Intuitive Machines with each passing day since launch. On Wednesday, the Houston-based company announced that it was able to place its robotic …

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Live coverage: SpaceX, Intuitive Machines to launch first Moon mission from LC-39A since 1972

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Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lander, named ‘Odysseus,’ displayed prior to encapsulation inside a pair of SpaceX Falcon 9 payload fairings. Image: SpaceX A launch pad billed as the Apollo program’s “Moonport” is once again preparing to send off a mission bound for the Moon. More than 50 years after Apollo 17, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket aims …

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Three robotic missions target Moon landings over one week in January

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Intuitive Machines engineers loading the IM-1 mission Nova-C lunar lander into its custom container in Houston, TX. Image: Intuitive Machines In a blend of interesting circumstances and happenstance, two private companies and Japan’s space agency are all poised to land on the Moon in the back half of January 2024. The Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency …

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Astrobotic’s Peregrine lander arrives in Florida ahead of Christmas Eve Moon-bound launch

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Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander in the clean room at Astrotech in Titusville, Florida. The spacecraft will be the main payload onboard the first launch of ULA’s Vulcan rocket. Image: ULA The first payload teed up for NASA’s industry-led missions to the Moon has arrived in Florida. Astrobotic announced on Halloween that its Peregrine lunar lander …

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Intuitive Machines targets launch to the Moon in mid-January

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The completed Nova-C lander for the IM-1 mission is photographed in mid-October at Intuitive Machines’ facilities in Houston, Texas, ahead of it being shipped to Cape Canaveral, Florida. Image: Intuitive Machines The first lunar lander aiming for a touchdown at the Moon’s south pole has a new launch date. Intuitive Machines said Friday it is …

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