Lunar and Planetary Science at the NSSDCA

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What's New in Lunar & Planetary Science

Four proposals have been selected as finalists for the next one, or possibly two, Discovery missions: DAVINCI+, a Venus atmospheric probe; IVO, the Io Volcano Observer; TRIDENT, a Triton flyby; and VERITAS, a Venus radar mapper. For more, see the NASA Press Release.

The European Space Agency Solar Orbiter launched successfully from Cape Canaveral on February 10 at 4:03 UT (February 9, 11:03 p.m. EST). The mission will orbit within 0.28 AU of the Sun and make multiple flybys of Venus. For more on the launch, see the NASA press release.

A primary sampling site has been chosen for the OSIRIS-REx mission. The site, designated "Nightingale", is located in a crater in the high northern hemisphere of asteroid Bennu. Sample collection is scheduled for August 2020. For more, see the NASA press release.

This Day in Planetary and Lunar Exploration History

1965: Launch of Ranger 8 lunar impact mission.
1996: Launch of the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) mission to asteroid 433 Eros.
1998: Voyager 1 surpasses Pioneer 10 as the man-made object most distant from the Sun.