Lunokhod 1 found, A new target for laser ranging Options

[SteveM]

This press release tells us that the Apache Point Observatory is now getting laser ranges to the newly recovered Lunokhod 1. The reflected signal is twice as strong as that from Lunokhod 2 and this new target means there are now five functioning reflectors on the moon.

Steve M

[SteveM]

There's a preprint of a paper summarizing the first four months of ranging to Lunokhod 1 that has been submitted to Icarus : "Laser Ranging to the Lost Lunokhod 1 Reflector" at arxiv.org. The authors find Lunokhod 1 to be "especially valuable for science because it is closer to the Moon’s limb than any of the other reflectors and, unlike the Lunokhod 2 reflector, we find that it is usable during the lunar day."

Steve M

This post has been edited by SteveM: Sep 30 2010, 12:48 PM