MoonRise

For the astronomical phenomenon, see Moonrise and moonset.
MoonRise
Mission typeLunar sample return
OperatorNASA / Jet Propulsion Laboratory

MoonRise is a robotic mission concept to the south pole of the Moon. It was proposed in 2017 for NASA's New Frontiers program mission 4, but it was not selected. If funded and launched by another NASA opportunity, it would focus on the giant South Pole–Aitken basin (SPA basin) on the far side of the Moon between the Moon's South Pole and Aitken Crater, 16° south of the Moon's equator. This basin measures nearly 2,500 kilometres (1,600 mi) in diameter and 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) in depth. This region is the oldest and deepest observable impact basin on the Moon and provides a window into the deep crust of the Moon and its history as a result. The basin is also among the largest recognized impact structures in the Solar System.[1]

MoonRise was not selected for the third New Frontiers program mission 3, losing out to the OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission,[2] and it lost again in the 2017 competition for New Frontiers program mission 4.[3]

  1. ^ "MoonRise" (PDF). NASA Facts. NASA. June 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 May 2011.
  2. ^ Clark, Stephen (25 May 2011). "NASA picks robotic asteroid voyager for liftoff in 2016". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 19 November 2016.
  3. ^ Glowatz, Elana (20 December 2017). "NASA's New Frontier Mission Will Search For Alien Life Or Reveal The Solar System's History". International Business Times. Retrieved 14 January 2018.