Second GRAIL spacecraft arrives in lunar orbit
Posted: Sun, Jan 1, 2012, 8:55 PM ET (0155 GMT)
Just over a day after the first of two NASA spacecraft went into orbit around the Moon, its twin successfully entered lunar orbit. The Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) B spacecraft inserted itself into an elliptical lunar orbit at 5:43 pm EST (2143 GMT) Sunday after a 37-minute engine burn. GRAIL-B entered orbit just over 24 hours after GRAIL-A entered orbit around the Moon. The two spacecraft will circularize their orbits at an altitude of 55 kilometers by March, when the science mission begins. The two spacecraft will use radio signals to map the Moon's gravity, allowing scientists to better understand the lunar interior.
Just over a day after the first of two NASA spacecraft went into orbit around the Moon, its twin successfully entered lunar orbit. The Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) B spacecraft inserted itself into an elliptical lunar orbit at 5:43 pm EST (2143 GMT) Sunday after a 37-minute engine burn. GRAIL-B entered orbit just over 24 hours after GRAIL-A entered orbit around the Moon. The two spacecraft will circularize their orbits at an altitude of 55 kilometers by March, when the science mission begins. The two spacecraft will use radio signals to map the Moon's gravity, allowing scientists to better understand the lunar interior.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Sunday, April 5
Aerospace engineer explains the challenges and significance of Artemis II
Virginia Tech — 11:51 am ET (1551 GMT) Airgas Supplies Mission-Critical High-Pressure Nitrogen for NASA's Historic Artemis II Launch
Airgas — 11:50 am ET (1550 GMT) Mirion Crew Active Dosimeters to Be Worn by Astronauts on NASA’s Artemis II Mission
Mirion — 11:49 am ET (1549 GMT) Titanic Shake-Up Could Explain Saturn’s Young Rings and Strange Moons
Eos — 11:34 am ET (1534 GMT) Small, Faint, or Fast, Rubin Will Find It
Eos — 11:34 am ET (1534 GMT) |
