A partial eclipse of the Moon will be visible from across the UK on the evening of 16/17 July, with the Moon rising already partially immersed in Earth’s deep umbral shadow.
A re-analysis of Apollo seismic data, along with ongoing observations by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, indicate the Moon is still tectonically active.
Data from a NASA instrument aboard India’s Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft has directly observed ‘definitive’ evidence of ice in shadowed craters at the Moon’s south polar region and with more sparsely distributed ice near the north pole.
European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst captured this spectacular view of the moon just above Earth’s discernible atmosphere from his perch aboard the International Space Station. ESA held a workshop this week focused on extracting lunar resources.
Scientists hope private backers will kick-start a mission to land a robotic probe on the South Pole of the moon within the next 10 years, drill deep into lunar bedrock and analyze primordial core samples to study the origins of the solar system.