NASA receives signal off Lunar Orbiter for the first time ever

NASA scientists have constantly tried firing laser beams at a reflector on the Moon’s surface which is nearly 385,000 kilometres far from the planet Earth. After several unsuccessful attempts over the years, the agency has now revealed that their team, along with the French colleagues at the Universite Cote D’Azur, has been able to get a signal back for the very first time.

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The outcome of this can potentially help improve laser tests that are used to examine the science of the universe. The reflector that the researchers focused on is placed on the robotic spacecraft called Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which has been orbiting the Moon for more than a decade.

One of the main reasons researchers mounted the reflector on the LRO was so it to could act as the main target and assist in testing the reflective ability of the panels that were left on the surface of the Moon nearly 50 years ago. With the older reflectors, it was difficult to get a strong signal, which also made it unreliable for use in physics.

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Use of laser reflectors

According to Erwan Mazarico, who is a planetary scientist from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, laser-ranging science is a long game. These laser reflectors can be used by experts to find out new things. Experts can also determine the distance that lies between the Moon reflectors and Earth laser stations by identifying the total amount of time it takes for the laser light to bounce back.

There is also a major revelation of the laser reflection data which indicates that both Moon and the Earth are slowly moving away at roughly 1.5 inches every year. This gap is caused due to the gravitational interactions that take place between the Moon and Earth.

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Mazarico also said that they have been gathering data for the past 50 years, and they are able to see the trends that they wouldn’t have seen otherwise. However, if researchers continue to rely on the older panels in the future, the space agency will have to understand why these panels are bringing just a tenth of the signal expected.

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Image credits: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center