Posted 09.12.2011 at 10:53 am
7 Comments
GRAIL Launch, September 10, 2011
NASA
As NASA promised last week, and only slightly delayed by weather, the GRAIL mission to the moon has launched. The twin probes will arrive just as 2012 dawns, and map the gravitational field and the interior characteristics of our nearest neighbor.
Read our full coverage of the mission here.
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Secretely the Knights Templer worked out a deal with NASA to store the Ark of The Covenant and the Holy Grail in orbit of the moon. Nobody will find it now. To the world, it’s just a satellite science mission to study the gravity of the moon.
As 2012 dawns? I'm a little confused... i thought back when we landed on the moon in the 60's and 70's it only took a few days to get to the moon. At least that is what the movie Apollo 13 has led me to believe. lol
wow. what a bunch of BS. why would it take so long for it to return to Earth?
@becosmos
as crazy as it might sounds its a possibility. the government will never give us the whole truth. makes you wonder what else they be doing up there.
_________________
The people of the world only divide into two kinds, One sort with brains who hold no religion, The other with religion and no brain.
- Abu-al-Ala al-Marri
I wonder if the reason that it will be taking longer for them to get there than previous is because the Grails were made using cheaper materials and a weaker rocket system.
This would make sense since they have been given a budget cut.
I imagine the reason of going slower is it’s just cheaper. You do not have to worry about human life. The satellites will get there, when they get there. No Apollo 13 situations to worry about.
I wonder what good information NASA will learn as they collect gravity information about the planet? What details it may reveal?
Instead of "supposing" you could do what the author of this article didn't do and spend 10 minutes on the internet and find the answer.
"...Why will they take three to four months to make a trip that the Apollo astronauts made in three days? The extra travel time has a number of benefits for this mission.
After the two spacecraft are captured into lunar orbit, they'll spend about two months reshaping their orbits from highly elliptical, taking 11.5 hours per orbit, to nearly circular with an orbital period of less than 2 hours. Both spacecraft will ultimately trace the same orbital path, with one spacecraft following the other in a route that takes them nearly over the Moon's poles as the Moon slowly rotates beneath them..."
GRAIL mission home page.
cholin3947, I appreciate you pointing out to go to the Grail mission home page. A+ ;)