Observations and Impact Timing of LCROSS Centaur - Moon bombing October 9, 2009

Observations and Impact Timing

This image shows the terrestrial landmasses that will be facing the Moon at the projected time of impact. This is the view of the Earth as seen from the lunar south pole at the time of impact.
Credit: NASA
Click image for full resolution. The LCROSS Centaur impact is scheduled for 4:31:19 a.m. PDT or 7:31:19 a.m. EDT (11:31:19 UTC) on October 9, 2009. The shepherding spacecraft will impact at 4:35:45 a.m. PDT or 7:35:45 a.m. EDT (11:35:45 UTC). Mission scientists estimate that the Centaur impact debris plume should be in view several seconds after Centaur impact and will peak in brightness at 30 to 100 seconds after impact.

Lunar Impact Locations
Centaur: -84.675, 311.275 E
Shepherding spacecraft: -84.729, 310.64 E

Click here for in-depth information about the location and timing of the impacts.

Time Zone	Lighting Conditions for Viewing
Eastern	Daybreak will prevent viewing of the debris plumes.
Central	Best viewing is West of the Mississippi River.
Mountain	Excellent lighting conditions.
Pacific	Excellent lighting conditions.
Alaska	Excellent lighting conditions.
Hawaii	Excellent lighting conditions.

• Get your viewing party started with an LCROSS Impact Party Kit.


• Amateur astronomers are encouraged to join the LCROSS observation campaign and the LCROSS Citizen Science campaign.


• Viewing the impacts for the casual observer will be very complicated. The impacts will not be visible to the naked eye or using binoculars. Mission scientists estimate that the Centaur impact will be visible using a telescope with a diameter of 10-12 inches or larger. Telescopes with smaller diameters or lesser capability may not be powerful. Click here for a list of telescopes and viewing ranges.


• For more information about viewing the impacts, visit the Frequently Asked Questions.

Source: NASA

NASA's mission to bomb the Moon

By SkyMania

NASA will tomorrow launch a spectacular mission to bomb the Moon. Their LCROSS mission will blast off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying a missile that will blast a hole in the lunar surface at twice the speed of a bullet. The missile, a Centaur rocket, will be steered by a shepherding spacecraft that will guide it towards its target - a crater close to the Moon's south pole. Scientists expect the blast to be so powerful that a huge plume of debris will be ejected.

NASA will tomorrow launch a spectacular mission to bomb the Moon. Their LCROSS mission will blast off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, carrying a missile that will blast a hole in the lunar surface at twice the speed of a bullet.

The missile, a Centaur rocket, will be steered by a shepherding spacecraft that will guide it towards its target - a crater close to the Moon's south pole.

Scientists expect the blast to be so powerful that a huge plume of debris will be ejected.

The attack on the Moon is not a declaration of war or act of wanton vandalism. Space scientists want to see if any water ice or vapour is revealed in the cloud of debris.

Though the Moon mostly a dry airless desert, they believe ice could be trapped in crater shadows near the south pole which never receive any sunlight. If so it could provide vital supplies for a manned moonbase.

Last year, British scientists identified regions where water might be found on the Moon and estimated that there could be enough to fill one of Europe's largest reservoirs.

The spacecraft will not head straight for the Moon. First it will orbit the Earth a number of times while its precise target is identified. Finally, it will send the missile into the Moon at twice the speed of a bullet on October 8.

The shepherding spacecraft will follow close behind, taking pictures and analysing the ejected debris as it looks for evidence of water. It has just four minutes to do this before it crashes into the Moon itself, producing a spectacular explosion that should be visible in amateur astronomers' telescopes.

It is a busy time for Moon crashes. Last week Japan's Kaguya probe collided with the Moon at the end of its own mission.

The LCROSS mission - it stands for Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite - will launch on an Atlas V rocket together with another spacecraft, called the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.

The orbiter will circle the Moon for at least a year searching for potential landing sites for astronauts when they return there in the next decade. It will also look for suitable materials that might support a colony.

The dual mission was due to blast off today but was delayed to make way for the shuttle Endeavour. However, another hydrogen leak means that the shuttle launch has now been delayed until next month.

Picture: An artist's impression of LCROSS missile being fired at the Moon. (NASA).

©PAUL SUTHERLAND, Skymania.com