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APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 4:05 am
by APOD Robot
Shadows at the Moon's South Pole
Explanation: Was this image of the Moon's surface taken with a microscope? No -- it's a
multi-temporal illumination map made with a wide-angle camera. To create it, the
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft collected 1,700 images over a period of 6 lunar days (6 Earth months), repeatedly covering an area centered on the
Moon's south pole from different angles. The resulting images were stacked to produce the
featured map -- representing the percentage of time each spot on the surface was illuminated by the
Sun. Remaining convincingly
in shadow, the floor of the 19-kilometer diameter
Shackleton crater is seen near the map's center. The
lunar south pole itself is at about 9 o'clock on the crater's rim. Crater floors near the lunar south and north poles can remain in permanent
shadow, while mountain tops can remain in nearly
continuous sunlight. Useful for
future outposts, the
shadowed crater floors could offer
reservoirs of water-ice, while the sunlit mountain tops offer
good locations to collect
solar power.
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 11:27 am
by heehaw
Certainly easy to spot where we will have our permanently staffed base, and the path to follow to collect ice every day. Less clear is what the inhabitants will do with themselves every day. Gather rocks?
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 1:32 pm
by Chris Peterson
heehaw wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 11:27 am
Certainly easy to spot where we will have our permanently staffed base, and the path to follow to collect ice every day. Less clear is what the inhabitants will do with themselves every day. Gather rocks?
Gather ice.
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 3:40 pm
by orin stepanek
Seems as though establishing a settlement there could be self
sustaining! with solar electricity; and constant water supply! Just
need a garden!
Do not disturb; kitty is sunbathing!
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 5:46 pm
by De58te
heehaw wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 11:27 am
Certainly easy to spot where we will have our permanently staffed base, and the path to follow to collect ice every day. Less clear is what the inhabitants will do with themselves every day. Gather rocks?
I would suggest build space telescopes in that permanently dark region and hunt for new exoplanets and or alien civilizations. I would guess that there is no man made light pollution there. Maybe even darker than at the Earth's South Pole. (I suppose they'd have to put black curtains over their habitat windows.) Even in the light areas which are not facing the Earth side they could build radio telescopes and listen for Seti. The side facing away from Earth would be blocked from stray radio waves coming from Earth.
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Sun Apr 10, 2022 6:47 pm
by bystander
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2022 2:01 am
by MarkBour
De58te wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 5:46 pm
heehaw wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 11:27 am
Certainly easy to spot where we will have our permanently staffed base, and the path to follow to collect ice every day. Less clear is what the inhabitants will do with themselves every day. Gather rocks?
I would suggest build space telescopes in that permanently dark region and hunt for new exoplanets and or alien civilizations. I would guess that there is no man made light pollution there. Maybe even darker than at the Earth's South Pole. (I suppose they'd have to put black curtains over their habitat windows.) Even in the light areas which are not facing the Earth side they could build radio telescopes and listen for Seti. The side facing away from Earth would be blocked from stray radio waves coming from Earth.
That does sound like a really great idea.
Will have to tread carefully around the secret Chinese base, of course.
Re: APOD: Shadows at the Moon's South Pole (2022 Apr 10)
Posted: Mon Apr 11, 2022 3:27 am
by Chris Peterson
De58te wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 5:46 pm
heehaw wrote: ↑Sun Apr 10, 2022 11:27 am
Certainly easy to spot where we will have our permanently staffed base, and the path to follow to collect ice every day. Less clear is what the inhabitants will do with themselves every day. Gather rocks?
I would suggest build space telescopes in that permanently dark region and hunt for new exoplanets and or alien civilizations. I would guess that there is no man made light pollution there. Maybe even darker than at the Earth's South Pole. (I suppose they'd have to put black curtains over their habitat windows.) Even in the light areas which are not facing the Earth side they could build radio telescopes and listen for Seti. The side facing away from Earth would be blocked from stray radio waves coming from Earth.
Space is probably better. Gravity messes up the figure of a mirror.