Some astrobiologists consider that having a satellite as big as The Moon could be one of the prerequisites of life on a planet. Satellites with sufficient mass can exert a stabilizing effect on the rotation axis of its planet preventing erratic wobbles like a top loosing its speed. In fact, our Earth experiences such wobbles known as the Milankovich Cycles but thanks to our moon the effects are dampened.
2019 marked the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing in Mare Tranquilitatis – Sea of Tranquility and naturally sparked a renewed interest on its curious jeological surface features. The featured playlist is a compilation of the Japanese Space Agency’s (JAXA) hugely sucessful Moon mission known as Kaguya (or Selene as referred by NASA). The satellite Kaguya circled the Moon for two years before it was deliberately crashed onto the south-east of near side of the Moon on June 10, 2009 (GMT). It captured spectacular lunar features and some of them are annotated with a voice over. Kaguya set the stage for the next Moon mission the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) which were launched together on the same rocket. Both satellites made fascinating observations revealing quite curious new features on the Moon. The two short documentaries Understanding Our Moon and Evolution and a Tour of the Moon are based on LRO/LCROSS findings. LRO is continuing to operate.
The following is an excerpt from the excellent BBC 12-part podcast series called 13 Minutes to the Moon highlighting the key components and background of the Apollo missions.
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