{"id":9890,"date":"2024-01-06T00:07:54","date_gmt":"2024-01-06T04:07:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/nasa-sending-five-payloads-to-moon-on-astrobotics-peregrine-lander\/"},"modified":"2024-01-06T00:07:54","modified_gmt":"2024-01-06T04:07:54","slug":"nasa-sending-five-payloads-to-moon-on-astrobotics-peregrine-lander","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/nasa-sending-five-payloads-to-moon-on-astrobotics-peregrine-lander\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA Sending Five Payloads to Moon on Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine Lander"},"content":{"rendered":"

NASA Sending Five Payloads to Moon on Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine Lander<\/h2>\n

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This image of Sinus Viscositatis, a large flat region that was once a giant lava flow near the Gruithuisen Domes, shows where Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine One lander will touch down. The image is a mosaic taken by the WAC (Wide Angle Camera) one of three cameras on the LROC (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera), which was launched into lunar orbit in 2009. <\/div>\n
Credit: NASA\/GSFC\/ Arizona State University<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NASA will kick off 2024 by sending five payloads to the Moon aboard Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine lander, Astrobotic Peregrine Mission One. The inaugural launch under the agency\u2019s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services)<\/a> initiative will blast off Monday, Jan. 8, from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a United Launch Alliance Vulcan rocket.<\/p>\n

The suite of NASA payloads aboard Peregrine One will aim to locate water molecules on the Moon, measure radiation and gases around the lander, and evaluate the lunar exosphere (the thin layer of gases on the Moon\u2019s surface). These measurements will improve our understanding of how solar radiation interacts with the lunar surface. The payloads will also provide data to NASA\u2019s Lunar-VISE (Lunar Vulkan Imaging and Spectroscopy Explorer) instrument suite, slated to land on the Gruithuisen Domes in 2026.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are so excited to see this vision become a reality. CLPS is an innovative way of leveraging American companies to send important science and technology payloads to the Moon,\u201d said Nicola Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. \u201cThe Moon is a rich destination for scientific discovery. Studying and sampling the lunar environment will help NASA unravel some of the greatest mysteries of our solar system for the benefit of all.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Peregrine lander is targeted to land Feb. 23 at Sinus Viscositatis, a lunar feature outside of the hardened lava Gruithuisen Domes<\/a> on the near side of the Moon. Similar natural structures on Earth require large volumes of water to form, leading scientists to believe that this landing site may contain evidence of water on the Moon.<\/p>\n

The five NASA payloads aboard Astrobotic\u2019s Peregrine One lander include the following:<\/p>\n