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Bi-static radar search for lunar water fails

Chandrayaan-1 failed to detect lunar surface water ice due to a malfunction, but hope remains with upcoming LCROSS impact.

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Over at Universe Today, Nancy Atkinson is reporting that an experiment looking for water ice under the lunar surface has failed. I wrote about this observation a little while ago: using radar, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and the Indian probe Chandrayaan-1 were going to sweep the crater Erlanger to look for a signal reflection indication the presence of ice. However, Chandrayaan-1 was already well on its way to its final malfunction, and the observations didn't work. Go to UT for the details. Bummer. But not all is lost: soon, the LCROSS mission will slam a massive weight into the Moon which will hopefully dislodge any of the ice that's there, and maybe we'll get our answer. Unless the Moon doesn't want us too, of course.

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