Lunar and Planetary Science at the NSSDCA

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What's New in Lunar & Planetary Science

The Hakuto-R M1 lunar landing mission and the Lunar Flashlight Moon orbiting cubesat are scheduled to launch together at 8:39 UT (3:39 a.m. EST) on 30 November 2022.

The Artemis 1 mission, a test of the Space Launch System carrying 10 cubesats to deep space, lifted off successfully on 16 November at 06:47 UT (1:47 a.m. EST). The cubesats have been deployed.

The CAPSTONE mission successfully entered its near-rectilinear halo orbit (NRHO) around the Moon on 13 November.

The Psyche asteroid mission has been rescheduled for launch in October, 2023, with a planned arrival date at the asteroid Psyche in August 2029. This has also resulted in a delay of the VERITAS mission until 2031. For more, see the NASA Release.

This Day in Planetary and Lunar Exploration History

1959: Launch of Pioneer P-3 attempted lunar orbiter, payload destroyed shortly after launch.
1965: France becomes the third nation to launch a rocket into Earth orbit, Asterix 1 on a Diamant A booster.
2011: Launch of the Mars Science Laboratory "Curiosity" Rover.
2018: InSight lander touches down on Mars.