Posted on 09/06/2011 12:39:28 PM PDT by ZGuy
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) captured the sharpest images ever taken from space of the Apollo 12, 14 and 17 landing sites. Images show the twists and turns of the paths made when the astronauts explored the lunar surface.
This interactive shows two LRO images of the Apollo 17 landing site. Click and drag on the white slider bar to wipe from one to the other. The left image was released today; the right image is a zoom-in on an LRO image released in 2009. LRO was moved into a lower orbit to capture the new image. The images do not line up perfectly because of differences in lighting conditions, angle of the LRO Camera, and other variables. Image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. (Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/ASU)
At the Apollo 17 site, the tracks laid down by the lunar rover are clearly visible, along with the last foot trails left on the moon. The images also show where the astronauts placed some of the scientific instruments that provided the first insight into the moon's environment and interior.
"We can retrace the astronauts' steps with greater clarity to see where they took lunar samples," said Noah Petro, a lunar geologist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., who is a member of the LRO project science team.
All three images show distinct trails left in the moon's thin soil when the astronauts exited the lunar modules and explored on foot. In the Apollo 17 image, the foot trails, including the last path made on the moon by humans, are easily distinguished from the dual tracks left by the lunar rover, which remains parked east of the lander.
"The new low-altitude Narrow Angle Camera images sharpen our view of the moon's surface," said Arizona State University researcher Mark Robinson, principal investigator for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC). "A great example is the sharpness of the rover tracks at the Apollo 17 site. In previous images the rover tracks were visible, but now they are sharp parallel lines on the surface."
This interactive shows two LRO images of the Apollo 12 landing site. Click and drag on the white slider bar to wipe from one to the other. The left image was released today; the right image is a zoom-in on an LRO image released in 2009. LRO was moved into a lower orbit to capture the new image. The images do not line up perfectly because of differences in lighting conditions, angle of the LRO Camera, and other variables. Image brightness and contrast have been altered to highlight surface details. (Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/ASU)
At each site, trails also run to the west of the landers, where the astronauts placed the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP) to monitor the moon's environment and interior.
This equipment was a key part of every Apollo mission. It provided the first insights into the moon's internal structure, measurements of the lunar surface pressure and the composition of its atmosphere. Apollo 11 carried a simpler version of the science package.
One of the details that shows up is a bright L-shape in the Apollo 12 image. It marks the locations of cables running from ALSEP's central station to two of its instruments. Although the cables are much too small for direct viewing, they show up because they reflect light very well.
NASA Goddard's Dr. Noah Petro discusses the significance of the new Apollo images from LRO. (Credit: Chris Smith, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center) › Download this and related videos in broadcast quality from NASA Goddard's Scientific Visualization Studio
The higher resolution of these images is possible because of adjustments made to LRO's orbit, which is slightly oval-shaped or elliptical. "Without changing the average altitude, we made the orbit more elliptical, so the lowest part of the orbit is on the sunlit side of the moon," said Goddard's John Keller, deputy LRO project scientist. "This put LRO in a perfect position to take these new pictures of the surface."
The maneuver lowered LRO from its usual altitude of approximately 31 miles (50 kilometers) to an altitude that dipped as low as nearly 13 miles (21 kilometers) as it passed over the moon's surface. The spacecraft has remained in this orbit for 28 days, long enough for the moon to completely rotate. This allows full coverage of the surface by LROC's Wide Angle Camera. The cycle ends today when the spacecraft will be returned to its 31-mile orbit.
The paths left by astronauts Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell on both Apollo 14 moon walks are visible in this image. (At the end of the second moon walk, Shepard famously hit two golf balls.) The descent stage of the lunar module Antares is also visible. (Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/ASU)
"These images remind us of our fantastic Apollo history and beckon us to continue to move forward in exploration of our solar system," said Jim Green, director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
LRO was built and managed by Goddard. Initial research was funded by the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. In September 2010, after a one-year successful exploration mission, the mission turned its attention from exploration objectives to scientific research in NASA's Science Mission Directorate.
Oh, man. I should have known it was them all along.
Obviously, overnight wind storms erased the rover tracks.
Duh.
Yep. To those of us connecting the dots, it is as obvious as the smirk on your face. ;->
Well, they did lose the Apollo 1 crew, remember. And Apollo 13 certainly was a close call. Flying things that fast, that far, involving that much stored energy, well, it’s just risky business. But still worthwhile, IMNSHO.
Because they used the remote controlled camera on the lander to transmit the liftoff the ascent stage of the LEM..That's where the video came from.
These photos are great reminders of a time when Americans, who are now grandfathers and great-grandfathers, could actually conceive, design and successfully implement the most complex project in mankind's history in less time than it takes to get EPA permits approved and construct a city building today.
Starting from scratch they released men from the confines of the earth for the first time in history, sent them to the moon and brought them home safely.
Today with a budget and workforce many times larger, NASA can't even send a crew into low earth orbit. It isn't due to a lack of skills and ability, it is a lack of real leadership in a government headed up by small, incompetent, bitter people.
But what about Apollo 18?
“As a friend of mine said, it is nice that we now have the technology to take a photograph of a place we actually visited 42 years ago!”
Well, the media cried “Why are we spending money out there when we can spend it on things here?”
So, we now have a 42 years’ mature welfare state instead of a 42 years’ mature space industry.
In hindsight we made the wrong, wrong, wrong choice.
Haven’t seen that movie yet, just the trailer. They pitch it like it’s a “true story” of a recently discovered secret mission to the Moon.
Does anybody know how the movie-makers finisse the tiny little issue of a “secret” Saturn V liftoff? Nobody noticed it? Was everybody looking the other way that day?
Not that I won’t be able to enjoy the movie. But I am dreading the day one of my students repeats back to me verbatim the “truth” of the secret Apollo 18 mission.
Oops. “finisse” should be “finesse”...
It was a classic, deer-in-the-headlights moment. After a few seconds of spluttering, his only "counter argument" was "No, no, don't say that!" As if speaking the truth were something forbidden to say to a liberal (reminded me of how vampires react to being shown a cross).
Of course not - haven't you looked at the pictures I JUST posted? Those are official NASA photographs, stamped for time and date and mission and EVA. They CLEARLY show that rover tracks have been somehow obliterated and covered up with mounded soil and bootprints.
So do the logic. Unless you're one of those freaks who believe NASA is lying and that we never went to the moon, what's the obvious conclusion?
NASA is leaking evidence of ET's, that's what!
After all, who ELSE could have covered up the rover tracks?
It's obvious that we're being gradually conditioned to accept the reality of ETs, and this is direct evidence from NASA, subtly made, with absolutely no other POSSIBLE explanation - right?
So keep you "we never went to the moon" crap to yourself - a lot of NASA people have laid it on the line to get thi information out, and they don't need your crazy conspiracy theories blocking them, thank you very much.
Somebody needs to forward this to Ryan Newman.
Wow, you really read me wrong pal. You post a link to a looney website that says we never left earth orbit, and I’m the one who is denying we landed on the Moon?
Really?
I worked at KSC in my college years, and I have met three moon walkers. I don’t think they were lying. Do you?
A good example is the two photos in a previous post. The author ignores the simple fact that a LOT of walking around was happening in the area in the foreground in the 24 hours between the photos.
They seem to think the guys went outside to snap a photo, ran back in where it was warm and then, 24 hours later, ran back out to snap a quick color photo.
Jeez.
The problem with all these conspiracy debunker folks is that they offer either no evidence or a laughable and complete missreading of existing evidence to make their point.
A good example is the two photos in a previous post. Your debunking ignores the simple fact that nowhere NEAR the amount of walking around necessary to cover up those rover tracks happened in the area in the foreground in the 24 hours between the photos.
In fact, there actually not all that many bootprints where the rover tracks were - it's mostly untouched soil. So how much walking around does it take to obliterate rover tracks with untouched soil?
You seem to think you can claim the guys went outside to snap a photo, never went back in to get warm and then, after walking around for 24 more hours, ran back out to snap a quick color photo that covered up rover tracks with no boot prints.
Jeez.
The Moon landings were, up to that time, the most thoroughly documented events in human history. Probably still are.
You can try to deny all of it you want, but you have a little problem when it comes to physical evidence: about 800 pounds of rocks.
Then there is this: I read an estimate that about 400K people worked directly on Apollo. Thousands would have been in the know if it was faked. Find one today who says it was.
By your estimation, the Apollo program qualifies as the most intricate and vast conspiracy in history, and yet everyone kept their mouths shut.
Wow.
Having a father who worked for NASA in a high profile position since Apollo, and having worked for NASA for a bit right out of college, this is just too funny.
Blame us baby-boomers: we were young and foolish and susceptible. Space or helping people, Vietnam or helping people- which should the government spend money on?
In some ways it hurts to get wisdom. Many boomers ignore how their good intentions turned out and twist the facts so their youthful choice won’t be seen as the pathetic foolishness it was by today’s youth. So today’s youth yokes on it’s huge debt and has no idea why their opportunities are so limited.
I ask people who say the government planted explosives in the WTC towers why didn’t the explosives blow up right as or shortly after the planes hit. They don’t have an answer.
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