Published: October 24, 2005
Hubble Telescope Looks for Resources on the Moon
Images could help plan future visits by robots, human explorers
NASA is using the unique capabilities of the Hubble Space Telescope for a new class of scientific observations of Earth's moon.
Hubble's resolution and sensitivity to ultraviolet light have enabled the telescope to search for important oxygen-bearing minerals on the moon.
Because the moon does not have a breathable atmosphere, minerals such as ilmenite (titanium and iron oxide) may be critical for a sustained human lunar presence. Ilmenite is a potential source of oxygen for breathing or to power rockets.
The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency.
The new Hubble observations are the first high-resolution, ultraviolet images ever acquired of the moon. The images give scientists a new tool for studying mineral variations in the lunar crust.
As NASA plans future expeditions to the moon, such data and other measurements could help researchers target the most valuable sites for robotic and human missions.
"These observations of the moon have been a challenging and highly successful technological achievement for NASA and the Hubble team, since the telescope was not originally designed for lunar observations," said Jennifer Wiseman, NASA program scientist for the Hubble.
"The images will inform both scientific studies of lunar geology and future decisions on further lunar exploration," she said.
Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys snapped ultraviolet and visible light images of known geologically diverse areas on the side of the moon nearest Earth. These included the Aristarchus impact crater and the adjacent Schroter's Valley.
Hubble also photographed the Apollo 15 and 17 landing sites, where astronauts collected rock and soil samples in 1971 and 1972.
Scientists are comparing properties of the rock and soil samples from the Apollo sites with the new Hubble images and the Aristarchus region, which neither humans nor robotic spacecraft have visited.
The Hubble observations of Aristarchus crater and Schroter's Valley will help refine researchers' understanding of the diverse, scientifically interesting materials in the region.
"Our initial findings support the potential existence of some unique varieties of oxygen-rich glassy soils in both the Aristarchus and Apollo 17 regions," said Jim Garvin, chief scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland and principal investigator for the project.
"They could be well-suited for visits by robots and human explorers in efforts to learn how to live off the land on the moon," he added.
Additional information and images from this project are available at the Hubble Web site.
See the text of the NASA press release.
Source: U.S. Department of State
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