Euros O'er Luna

Just wanted to throw out a Congrats to teh Continentals! This is good progress should we be strangulating the planet we're currently starting to take seriously.

And it seems to dug up some new info for Lunar scientists too.

European probe sends back data on moon
By DAVID McHUGH, Associated Press Writer Mon Sep 4, 8:32 AM ET

DARMSTADT, Germany - The SMART-1 spacecraft sent back an unexpectedly rich data haul that could shed light on the moon's origins and evolution before its three-year voyage ended in a planned crash on the lunar surface, European space scientists said Monday.

The mission's primary purpose was to test a new, efficient propulsion system and better spacecraft automation for future interplanetary missions. But successes in lowering the craft's orbit around the moon meant a closer and better look at surface, they said.

"It was really a great mission for the agency," mission manager Gerhard Schwehm said at a news conference at the European Space Agency's mission control center in Darmstadt, Germany. "It was a technology demonstrator that grew up and provide lots of beautiful science data."
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