NASA to Bomb Moon
08. Oct, 2009 
1 Comment
Just to find water? Leave the moon alone! I don’t get it…maybe there is more to it but it just doesn’t make sense. We have a lot of water right here on earth…use some of that.
NASA plans to crash a rocket into the moon early Friday, blasting a huge hole in the lunar surface to search for hidden water.
The explosion, scheduled for 4:30am Arizona time, is expected to visible with from Earth using amateur telescopes, according to NASA.
It’s also expected to be aired live by NASA-TV and on www.nasa.gov/ntv.
According to NASA’s website, the Centaur rocket will make impact at the Moon’s south pole.
Scientists tell Scientific American Magazine that they expect the blast to be so powerful that a huge plume of debris will be ejected.
A spacecraft will fly through the debris plume, sending data back to Earth before crashing into the lunar surface and creating a second debris plume, according to NASA’s website.
Why blast a hole in the moon? NASA wants to see if any water, ice or vapor is revealed in the cloud of debris. If there is, that might provide supplies for a future manned moonbase.
Friday’s explosion is part of NASA’s LCROSS (Lunar CRater Observing and Sensing Satellite) mission looking for lunar water.
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