LADEE

Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer
Artist's depiction of LADEE in lunar orbit
Mission typeLunar atmospheric research
OperatorNASA
COSPAR ID2013-047A Edit this at Wikidata
SATCAT no.39246
Websitenasa.gov/ladee
Mission durationPrimary mission: 100 days
Extended mission: 28 days
Total duration: 223 days
Spacecraft properties
BusMCSB
ManufacturerAmes Research Center
Launch mass383 kg (844 lb)[1]
Dry mass248.2 kg (547 lb)[1]
Payload mass49.6 kg (109 lb)[1]
Dimensions1.85×1.85×2.37 m (6.1×6.1×7.8 ft)[1]
Power295 watts[1]
Start of mission
Launch dateSeptember 7, 2013, 03:27 (2013-09-07UTC03:27Z) UTC[2]
RocketMinotaur V
Launch siteWallops Pad 0B
ContractorOrbital[1]
End of mission
DisposalDeorbited
Decay dateApril 18, 2014 (2014-04-19), ~04:30 UTC
Orbital parameters
Reference systemSelenocentric[3]
Periselene altitude25–50 km (16–31 mi)[4]
Aposelene altitude60–80 km (37–50 mi)[4]
Inclination157 degrees[4]
Period111.5 to 116.5 minutes[1]
EpochPlanned (science phase)
Moon orbiter
Orbital insertionOctober 6, 2013, 10:57 UTC

Logotype of the mission

The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE; /ˈlædi/)[5] was a NASA lunar exploration and technology demonstration mission. It was launched on a Minotaur V rocket from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on September 7, 2013.[6] During its seven-month mission, LADEE orbited the Moon's equator, using its instruments to study the lunar exosphere and dust in the Moon's vicinity. Instruments included a dust detector, neutral mass spectrometer, and ultraviolet-visible spectrometer, as well as a technology demonstration consisting of a laser communications terminal.[7] The mission ended on April 18, 2014, when the spacecraft's controllers intentionally crashed LADEE into the far side of the Moon,[8][9] which, later, was determined to be near the eastern rim of Sundman V crater.[10]

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