South Korea Launches First Moon Mission on SpaceX Rocket

Becoming a member of the checklist of countries with formidable plans in area, South Korea set off for the moon on Thursday.

Its first lunar spacecraft, named Danuri, was carried towards area on time at 7:08 p.m. Japanese time by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which launched from Cape Canaveral House Pressure Station in Florida. After about 40 minutes and a collection of engine firings, the Korean spacecraft separated from the rocket’s second stage, embarking on its journey to the moon.

When it arrives in lunar orbit, it should be part of spacecraft from NASA, India and China which are presently exploring Earth’s companion. Danuri’s scientific payload will examine the moon’s magnetic discipline, measure portions of components and molecules like uranium, water and helium-3, and {photograph} the darkish craters on the poles the place the solar by no means shines.

What’s Danuri, and what’s going to it examine?

Initially generally known as the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter, the mission has now been given the title of Danuri, a portmanteau of the Korean phrases for “moon” and “take pleasure in.” It will likely be South Korea’s first area mission to transcend low-Earth orbit.

Its scientific devices embody a magnetometer, a gamma-ray spectrometer and three cameras. NASA equipped one of many cameras, ShadowCam, which is delicate sufficient to choose up the few photons that bounce off the terrain into the moon’s darkish, completely shadowed craters. These craters, positioned on the moon’s poles, stay ceaselessly chilly, under minus 300 levels Fahrenheit, and comprise water ice that has gathered over the eons.

The ice might present a frozen historical past of the 4.5 billion-year-old photo voltaic system and a bounty of assets for future visiting astronauts. Such ice may also be extracted and melted to supply water and damaged aside into oxygen and hydrogen, which would supply each air to breathe for astronauts and rocket propellants for vacationers seeking to launch from the moon to different locations.

What else has South Korea executed in area?

South Korea is growing its personal rockets. Its first design, Naro-1, efficiently reached orbit on the third attempt, in 2013. Since then, the Korea Aerospace Analysis Institute — South Korea’s equal of NASA — has shifted its efforts to Nuri, a bigger, three-stage rocket. The second Nuri flight in June efficiently positioned a number of satellites in orbit.

South Korea has a number of communications and earth statement satellites in low-Earth orbit. It additionally has an intensive navy missile program.

What number of nations have despatched missions to the moon?

The USA and the Soviet Union despatched quite a few robotic spacecraft to the moon starting within the Nineteen Sixties. NASA’s Apollo program despatched astronauts there from 1968 by way of 1972. The world then nearly completely misplaced curiosity within the moon for 3 a long time, however a hubbub of exercise has returned.

Prior to now few years, China has despatched a number of profitable robotic spacecraft, together with three landers. NASA has despatched a number of orbiters there and has enlisted business firms to ship payloads to the lunar floor within the coming years.

Japan and the European House Company have launched moon missions, and India has despatched two orbiters to the moon, though a lander accompanying the second orbiter crashed because it descended towards the floor in 2019.

One other mission in 2019, Beresheet, a lander constructed by an Israeli nonprofit, SpaceIL, additionally crashed because it tried to land on the moon.

Why will it take Danuri so lengthy to get to the moon?

The spacecraft is taking an extended, energy-efficient path to the moon. It first heads towards the solar, then loops again round to be captured in lunar orbit in mid-December. This “ballistic trajectory” takes longer however doesn’t require a big engine firing to sluggish the spacecraft when it will get to the moon.

Danuri will then regulate its orbit to an altitude of 62 miles above the moon’s floor. The principle scientific mission is scheduled to final for one 12 months.

What else goes to the moon this 12 months?

A small NASA-financed spacecraft, CAPSTONE, is en path to the moon to discover a extremely elliptical orbit, the place NASA plans to construct a lunar outpost for future astronauts. It’s scheduled to reach in lunar orbit in November.

However the huge occasion of the 12 months will probably be Artemis 1, an uncrewed take a look at of NASA’s large rocket and capsule which are to take astronauts again to the moon within the coming years. NASA is aiming to launch in late August or early September.

A few business firms, ispace of Japan and Intuitive Machines of Houston, are additionally hoping to launch small robotic landers to the moon late this 12 months.