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Two NASA moon probes will end their gravity-mapping mission in spectacular fashion Monday (Dec. 17), crashing intentionally into a cliff near the lunar north pole.
The twin Grail spacecraft, known as Ebb and Flow, will slam into the raised rim of a moon crater at 5:28 p.m. EST (2258 GMT) Monday, mission team members said today (Dec. 13). The probes will impact about 20 seconds apart, with each traveling at 3,760 mph (6,050 kph) or so. The crash zone is far from any area where previous moon missions — such as NASA's Apollo efforts — touched down, so Grail's final moments won't endanger sites of historical importance, officials said. ....
Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
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