Moon SMART-1 Impact Campaign

Artistic representation of SMART- 1 around the Moon. Image: ESA

17th of August, 2006. If we could observe the distant and dark size of the Moon from the Earth, we would watch, in this same day, a similar event to the meteor impact registered by NASA researchers.

In this day, the lunar spaceship SMART-1 (Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology) of the European Space Agency- ESA, would have its main source of fuel depleted (Xenon – Xe) and would naturally slam against the lunar surface, finishing its successful mission for qualification of its ionic propulsion engine and its observations and studies of the Moon composition, which started with its launching in September, 2003.

We cannot obviously observe the impact in the dark side of the Moon but, we can postpone it and program it for occurring in the visible side, enabling our telescopes for viewing the impact from the Earth, for the necessary analyses.

This is being made. 3rd of September, 2006 is the new established date for the impact. In this day, in the closest side of the Moon, on the dark part near the terminador, the lunar spaceship SMART-1 will slam against the lunar surface.

In order to things work, some technical adjustments have been executed since the 19th of June and must be concluded until the 2th of July. These adjustments will impulse the spacecraft raising its perilune 90 km above its normal orbit.

A further series of minor manoeuvres may be performed on 27 and 28 July, 25 August and on 1 and 2 September 2006 to adjust the SMART-1 trajectory.

Predicted evolution of the perilune ray from the 19th of June until the 3rd of September, 2006. Credit of the illustration: European Space Agency - ESA

Dr. Bernard H. Foing

At this moment, professional and amateur Astronomers (see list in http://www.cosis.net/members/meetings/team.php?team=2442&PHPSESSID=94efc3bd689a33deb8175f1834c3d154 in the end of this article) of some countries, under the coordination of Dr. Bernard H. Foing (photo above), scientist of the SMART-1 Project, are integrating and planning an international research campaign, from the predictions or simulation of impact effects until the observations that will be carried in land by the global astronomical community.

In the project, as in many other astronomical international campaigns, the effective participation of the amateur astronomers will be extremely necessary.

The observations and/or captured images of the impact made by amateurs and the resultant processes will be requested for studies and documentation and then added to the works which will be developed in the big research centers involved in the study:

Asiago Astrophysical Observatory Italy, Paris Meudon observatory, Observatoire Pic du Midi, Observatoire Haute Provence, To silence High Spain, South African Astronomical Observatory, Tenerife (ESA OGS + 1.m infrared), La Palm Roque of los Muchachos/Galileo telescope, LNA/Brazil Itajubá/Pico of the Days, ESO Paranal VLT, ESO La Silla, Cerro Tololo/Chile, Melbourne/Florida Institute tech, Kitt Peak/Arizona, Mauna Kea CFHT (+ IRTF, UKIRT), Zelentchuk/Crimeia, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) among others.

- A number of observatories have already confirmed their participation to the observing campaign:

. CEA Cariri - Juazeiro do Norte, Ceará, Brazil
. VLBI Very Long Baseline Interferometry and radio observatories
. South African Large Telescope SALT
. Calar Alto
. ESA OGS Optical Ground Station at Tenerife
. Argentina National Telescope
. Florida Tech Robotic telescopes
. Hawaii NASA IRTF
. Japanese telescope
. ODIN observatory (from space)