LRO Observes the LCROSS Impact (transcript)

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Narrator: On October 9, 2009, a Centaur rocket impacted the Moon, followed soon by NASA's LCROSS spacecraft. NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter was there, both to help pick the location of the impact, and to observe the resulting debris and vapor cloud. First, an impact site had to be selected. Data from LRO's LEND and Diviner instruments helped pick a good location--LEND to find a probable source of hydrogen, and Diviner to pick a cold, permanently shadowed region likely to contain certain volatiles. Once the impact occurred, these same instruments, along with LRO's LAMP instrument, observed the impact. LAMP revealed the presence of molecular hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and other materials, Diviner measured a noticeable change in thermal radiation coming from the site, and LEND reported the presence of hydrogen. All in all, these results both complement LCROSS findings and pave the way for future study of Earth's own satellite.

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