NASA's ShadowCam captures darkest depths of Moon's South Pole | See pics

With a successful Artemis I mission behind them, scientists at NASA are now putting a hypersensitive optical camera to use to explore an intriguing part of the moon. The instrument, known as ShadowCam, is helping a team of scientists and engineers gain a deeper understanding of the lunar South Pole region, a key focus of the Artemis III mission. 

According to NASA's official website, the camera has captured several striking images of the shadowy area as it flies with five other Korean instruments aboard KARI (Korea Aerospace Research Institute)'s KPLO (Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter), which launched last August. 

One of the first snapshots taken by ShadowCam displayed the moon's Shackleton crater in sharp detail. The crater is situated near the lunar South Pole. The instrument was able to capture high-quality images through its ability to function in extremely dimly lit environments, about 200 times better than the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Narrow Angle Camera.

ShadowCam is capturing the Moon in hi-res 🌙

As we prepare to land future #Artemis astronauts near the lunar South Pole, images from NASA’s instrument aboard Korea Aerospace Research Institute’s Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter may inform site selection: https://t.co/0Pc2m9B8XY pic.twitter.com/gkALlHoud4

— NASA Artemis (@NASAArtemis) February 10, 2023

NASA’s Shadowcam is helping us see the darkest places of the lunar surface for future Artemis missions. Read more --> https://t.co/M5aaQqWb3z pic.twitter.com/2h6vktsnBq

— Centennial Challenge (@NASAPrize) March 14, 2023

All you need to know about ShadowCam

Another image was taken under Earthshine, a phenomenon that creates illumination on the Moon when a full Earth is observed. The ShadowCam is a creation of Malin Space Science Systems and Arizona State University (ASU), and is extremely light-sensitive.

The device can take high-resolution images of the darkest of regions on the Moon to help in lunar exploration. Since Danuri entered lunar orbit last year, the camera has recorded several images of the Moon's North and South Pole regions. 
While its primary function is to use secondary illumination from lunar geologic features for imaging, the camera has surpassed its abilities thanks to its high-tech features.