Characterization of the LCROSS impact plume from a ground-based imaging detection.

The Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission was designed to search for evidence of water in a permanently shadowed region near the lunar south pole. An instrumented Shepherding Spacecraft followed a kinetic impactor and provided--from a nadir perspective--the only images of the debris plume. With independent observations of the visible debris plume from a more oblique view, the angles and velocities of the ejecta from this unique cratering experiment are better constrained. Here we report the first visible observations of the LCROSS ejecta plume from Earth, thereby ascertaining the morphology of the plume to contain a minimum of two separate components, placing limits on ejecta velocities at multiple angles, and permitting an independent estimate of the illuminated ejecta mass. Our mass estimate implies that the lunar volatile inventory in the Cabeus permanently shadowed region includes a water concentration of 6.3±1.6% by mass.

EPOXI at comet Hartley 2.

Understanding how comets work--what drives their activity--is crucial to the use of comets in studying the early solar system. EPOXI (Extrasolar Planet Observation and Deep Impact Extended Investigation) flew past comet 103P/Hartley 2, one with an unusually small but very active nucleus, taking both images and spectra. Unlike large, relatively inactive nuclei, this nucleus is outgassing primarily because of CO(2), which drags chunks of ice out of the nucleus. It also shows substantial differences in the relative abundance of volatiles from various parts of the nucleus.

Detection of water in the LCROSS ejecta plume.

Several remote observations have indicated that water ice may be presented in permanently shadowed craters of the Moon. The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission was designed to provide direct evidence. On 9 October 2009, a spent Centaur rocket struck the persistently shadowed region within the lunar south pole crater Cabeus, ejecting debris, dust, and vapor. This material was observed by a second "shepherding" spacecraft, which carried nine instruments, including cameras, spectrometers, and a radiometer. Near-infrared absorbance attributed to water vapor and ice and ultraviolet emissions attributable to hydroxyl radicals support the presence of water in the debris. The maximum total water vapor and water ice within the instrument field of view was 155 ± 12 kilograms. Given the estimated total excavated mass of regolith that reached sunlight, and hence was observable, the concentration of water ice in the regolith at the LCROSS impact site is estimated to be 5.6 ± 2.9% by mass. In addition to water, spectral bands of a number of other volatile compounds were observed, including light hydrocarbons, sulfur-bearing species, and carbon dioxide.

The LCROSS cratering experiment.

As its detached upper-stage launch vehicle collided with the surface, instruments on the trailing Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) Shepherding Spacecraft monitored the impact and ejecta. The faint impact flash in visible wavelengths and thermal signature imaged in the mid-infrared together indicate a low-density surface layer. The evolving spectra reveal not only OH within sunlit ejecta but also other volatile species. As the Shepherding Spacecraft approached the surface, it imaged a 25- to-30-meter-diameter crater and evidence of a high-angle ballistic ejecta plume still in the process of returning to the surface--an evolution attributed to the nature of the impactor.