Results tagged “Moon”

LCROSS mission picture courtesy NASA


This morning, NASA's LCROSS (Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite) intentionally crashed into the moon's surface in hopes of uncovering traces of ice near the moon's south pole. The impact created a crater of about 100 feet (300 meters) wide and scattered 200 tons of material on the moon's surface.

Impacts on the moon aren't unusual. Other objects similar in size to LCROSS, such as meteors, hit the moon every month and more than two dozen NASA objects are already scattered across the moon's surface.

Learn more about the LCROSS crash on National Geographic News.

Check out pictures of moon exploration on National Geographic Kids.

Quiz Your Noodle and find out how much you know about the moon on National Geographic Kids.

Play Pluto's Secret on National Geographic Kids.

Photograph courtesy NASA


July 20 is the 40th anniversary of humankind's first steps on the moon. On July 16, 1969, the world watched as the Apollo 11 rocket Columbia lifted off from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, carrying astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins. The trip to the moon took three days, and on July 20, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepped off of the Eagle, Apollo 11's lunar module. People back home on Earth watched the astronauts take their first steps on the moon, and heard Neil Armstrong say "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." The astronauts spent a total of 21 hours on the moon before the Eagle returned to the Columbia for the trip home.

The Apollo 11 crew safely returned to Earth on July 24, 1969. NASA plans to send another mission to the moon within the next decade.

Get the story behind the moon landing on National Geographic News.

Check out the Man and the Moon features on National Geographic Channel.

How much do you know about the moon? Quiz Your Noodle and find out!

Watch a video of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon.

The next astronauts to land on the moon will be driving an all-new lunar rover. The new rover, called the Chariot, will contain several improvements over the old "moon buggies," including an optional pressurized cabin with beds, a pantry, a waste-management system, and a pair of space suits, allowing astronauts to live and work "on the road" for up to two weeks.

The rover will need to pass several rounds of tests between now and 2019, when the final model will be complete.



Read more on National Geographic News.