The shadow cam can see if there is water on the moon… Korean lunar orbiter’Mission’ unveiled

The specific mission of the Korean lunar orbiter that Korea will launch has been revealed. On the 1st, the Ministry of Science and ICT (Ministry of Science and Technology) unveiled a plan to operate a scientific mission for the Korean Pathfinder Lunar Orbit (KPLO), which is scheduled to be launched in August next year. The lunar orbiter goes to space with six payloads and runs 100km above the lunar surface for one year and performs several missions. Focusing on which payload is mounted, we look at what mission the lunar orbiter will perform.

The high-resolution camera (LUTI, LUnar Terrain Imager) is a camera that photographs major areas of the lunar surface. The high-resolution camera developed by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute has a maximum resolution of 5m or less and accurately observes the lunar surface. The position error, which is the maximum distance between the actual position and the position photographed by the camera, is less than 225m.

While observing the lunar surface with such precision, the lunar orbiter searches for candidates for landing where the lunar lander, which is expected to launch by 2030, should land. It also shoots astronomical images that can be seen from the moon using a high-resolution camera.

The Wide-Angle Polarimetric Camera (PolCam) developed by the Korea Astronomical Research Institute photographs the surface of the moon with a resolution of 100m. A wide-field polarization camera captures polarized light (light vibrating in a specific direction and traveling in a specific direction) that normal cameras cannot capture as an image. The world’s first polarization map on the lunar surface is expected to contribute to the study of space weathering caused by micro-meteorite impacts on the lunar surface, solar wind, and high-energy spacecraft.

Creating a titanium map is also the role of a wide-field polarization camera. A mineral containing a lot of titanium (ilmenite) has a characteristic of reflecting more light at a specific wavelength. Using this principle, wide-field polarization cameras work to find and map titanium-rich areas in a specific area of ​​the moon.

“The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) launched by NASA created a titanium map of the moon with a resolution of 300m.” It will be used for research on lunar surface geology and resource exploration by creating a titanium map with a precise 100m resolution.”

The magnetic field meter (KMAG·KPLO MAGnetometer) developed by Kyung Hee University is a device that measures the minute magnetic field around the moon. It was in charge of creating a high-precision 3D magnetic field map of the world’s highest level (±1000nT range) by measuring the intensity of the minute magnetic field around the moon, which has gradually disappeared after the formation of the moon.

Using a magnetic field meter, it is possible to detect magnetic anomaly areas with strong magnetic field strength locally on the moon’s surface. Through this, the lunar orbit will conduct research on how magnetic anomalies formed and evolved.

The Ministry of Science and Technology expects that “the magnetic field meter will be able to obtain data necessary for research to investigate the process of formation and evolution of the moon or to investigate the space environment.”

The gamma-ray spectrometer (KGRS·KPLO Gamma-Ray Spectrometer) developed by the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources collects gamma-ray measurement data on the lunar surface. It performs lunar resource exploration using a scintillator-based gamma-ray spectroscopy system. Specifically, it plans to create a’elemental map’ by investigating what elements exist on the moon. It studies whether helium-3, which is attracting attention as a clean energy source, and water, oxygen, rare earths or minerals, which are essential resources for life, are present on the moon.

In addition, the gamma-ray spectroscopy is expected to be used for lunar geological and resource research by searching for materials that can be used for the construction of the lunar base. The Ministry of Science and Technology explained, “In the process of exploring lunar resources, gamma-ray spectroscopy is expected to provide important candidate information for lunar landing site selection.”

The DTN (Disruption Tolerant Network) verifier developed by the Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) verifies the space Internet communication technology between Earth and Moon orbits. It is in charge of message/file transmission or real-time video transmission test.

According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, a high-resolution camera, a wide-field polarization camera, a magnetic field meter, a gamma ray spectrometer, and a space internet verifier were all developed with domestic technology. All five payloads developed by Korea have already been in stock at the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, which is the governing body of the lunar orbiter.

The shadow camera (ShadowCam) developed by Arizona State University in the United States boards a Korean lunar orbiter to explore the dark shaded areas of the moon. It is known that the sensitivity is about 800 times better than that of a shadow camera mounted on an American lunar reconnaissance satellite currently orbiting the moon.

The moon rotates and revolves in the same period, so only one side is always visible on Earth. So, some areas of the moon are permanent shaded areas that have been shaded throughout the year. This place is too dark to shoot with a normal camera. The shadow camera is a camera that can shoot here.

The reason for filming the permanently shaded area of ​​the moon is that water or ice may exist here. The moon has no atmosphere, so water molecules evaporate immediately when exposed to sunlight. On the other hand, there is a hypothesis that there is a possibility that traces of water molecules may exist in the shaded areas of the moon, and a shadow camera is used to test this hypothesis. Shadow cameras are expected to be brought into Korea in June through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Science and Technology is planning to launch a Korean lunar orbiter using the US SpaceX’s Falcon-9 rocket in August 2022. If the lunar orbiter successfully enters space, the goal is to settle in the lunar orbit around the end of next year. If the lunar orbit is also successful, the lunar orbiter is expected to study the moon in earnest for one year from January to December 2023.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute said, “The lunar orbiter is scheduled to launch on August 1st,” and said, “We are preparing to launch the lunar orbiter no matter how much before September 9th.”

Reporter Moon Hee-cheol [email protected]