,
4 tweets,
1 min read
Read on Twitter
I just want to put out there, that there will still be science that comes from the #Beresheet's mission to the surface. It may be little consolation this soon since it's not the science we wanted, but the way the lander hit the surface will tell things about the regolith... /1
2/3 We will see how the texture of the soil is affected, and the thermal properties of the ejecta. These are important for science. We will also learn physics about regolith dynamics in low gravity, relevant to secondary cratering to understand the overall history of the Moon.
3/3 Also, we'll study the extent of ejecta from crash dynamics. This will help mission planning. We always worry about crashiing near an outpost when planning how far away to land. I did some of this analysis during Constellation. We need more data; Beresheet will provide it.
4/4 So I just wanted to put it out there that all was not lost. Putting a lander on the Moon was amazing. It is impossible to not get good science when something that amazing has been accomplished.
