Sunday, December 22, 2013

Visions of Earth through the Yutu Rover’s Eyes

Visions of Earth through the Yutu Rover’s Eyes:
Earth eclipses the sun from Chang'e 3's location in the Sea of Rains on April 15, 2014. At the same time, we'll see a total lunar eclipse from the ground. Stellarium
Visions of Earth through the Yutu Rover’s Eyes
Earth eclipses the sun from Chang’e 3′s location in the Sea of Rains on April 15, 2014. At the same time, we’ll see a total lunar eclipse from the ground. Stellarium
Last night I used my telescope to eye-hike the volcanic plains of the Sea of Rains (Mare Imbrium) where the Yutu rover and lander sit beneath a blistering sun. With no atmosphere to speak of and days that last two weeks, noontime temperatures can hit 250 degrees Fahrenheit (122 C) . That’s hot enough that mission control at the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center has decided to draw the shades and give the rover a nap from science duties until December 23 when things cool down a bit.
While studying the subtle gray hues of the Imbrium lava flows I got to wondering what the sky might look like if I could don a spacesuit and visit the landing site “where the skies are not cloudy all day” (to quote a famous song). (...)
Read the rest of Visions of Earth through the Yutu Rover’s Eyes (889 words)

© Bob King for Universe Today, 2013. |Permalink |2 comments |
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