Lunar and Planetary Institute
Lunar and Planetary Institute

 

 

Zooming in on a Blue Moon

August 30, 2012

This still shot of Aristarchus Crater is taken from the new video, From the Earth to the Moon, produced from an integrated set of lunar images and topographical data obtained by the NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO).According to modern folklore, a “blue moon” is the second full moon in a calendar month. On Friday, August 31, people all around the world will have the opportunity to look at the skies and marvel at the blue moon. To coincide with this special lunar event, a new video entitled From the Earth to the Moon is being released to showcase our Moon with scenes so dramatic you may find yourself reaching out to pick up a rock and becoming restless for a chance to walk among the lunar peaks.

This fresh look at the Moon is produced from an integrated set of lunar images and topographical data obtained by the NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), in particular, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) and Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) teams.

From the Earth to the Moon is a brief but vivid video and audio recording that

Future missions to the Moon are needed to investigate the earliest processes associated with the formation of the Earth-Moon system, the evolution of the Moon through a period with a planet-wide magma ocean, and a subsequent period of intense bombardment that repeatedly modified the surfaces of the Earth, Moon, and all other inner solar system planets. The details of that bombardment and its effect on the origin and evolution of life on Earth are waiting to be discovered on the lunar surface. If we are going to explore space, let us reach for the Moon and beyond.

The HD video is available for free download in iPhone, Quicktime, and Windows formats.

To download the video, visit

From the Earth to the Moon

For more information, visit

Center for Lunar Science and Exploration


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Last updated August 30, 2012