NASA's twin lunar probes named Ebb and Flow will be crashed into an unnamed mountain near the Moon's North Pole a little over an hour from now. Video of the event from the Slooh Space Camera will be available here. I'm not sure if we will actually be able to see anything though.

Also, the Slooh site will be watching for signs of the apocalypse all week.

Hmmm, the Chinese managed to send their moon probe out into deep space to photograph an asteroid after the conclusion of the primary moon mission. Seems to be a slightly better use of a redundant probe than crashing another into the moon.

Perhaps the impact will split the moon in two?

(December 17, 2012 at 3:16 pm)Chuck Wrote: Hmmm, the Chinese managed to send their moon probe out into deep space to photograph an asteroid after the conclusion of the primary moon mission. Seems to be a slightly better use of a redundant probe than crashing another into the moon.

Пойдем с музыкой!

Let`s go with music!


..... Russian saying.

(December 17, 2012 at 3:16 pm)Chuck Wrote: Hmmm, the Chinese managed to send their moon probe out into deep space to photograph an asteroid after the conclusion of the primary moon mission. Seems to be a slightly better use of a redundant probe than crashing another into the moon.

I had basically the same thought when I first read about this a couple of weeks ago.

Never the less that's what they plan to do, and video of what amounts to a couple of good sized meteor impacts on the moon should be pretty cool if they manage to see anything.

About 5 minutes until the show starts.

(December 17, 2012 at 3:13 pm)popeyespappy Wrote: NASA's twin lunar probes named Ebb and Flow will be crashed into an unnamed mountain near the Moon's North Pole a little over an hour from now.

It's to give the aliens more to investigate than just the human colon.

They just said the actual impact event won't be for about 2 hours.

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(December 17, 2012 at 3:16 pm)Chuck Wrote: Hmmm, the Chinese managed to send their moon probe out into deep space to photograph an asteroid after the conclusion of the primary moon mission. Seems to be a slightly better use of a redundant probe than crashing another into the moon.

Apparently they do hope to get some data from the crash by studying the ejecta with several instruments and the crash site with the LRO.

Also the crash is going to be on the dark side so there won't be anything to see...

Quote:Also the crash is going to be on the dark side so there won't be anything to see...

Clever...that way if they miss no one will know.

(December 17, 2012 at 5:14 pm)Minimalist Wrote:

Quote:Also the crash is going to be on the dark side so there won't be anything to see...

Clever...that way if they miss no one will know.

The dark side or the far side? Collision on the dark (unlit) portion of the near side could still generate a visible flash, and if sufficiently close to the terminator between lit and unlit portion, send up a plume which could be visibly lit by the sun shinning over the lunar horizon, like a thunderhead on earth that can remain lit by the sun after the sun is seen to set from the ground.

Collision on the far side has less chance of being seen, unless it is sufficiently close to the limb of the moon for it plume to rise above lunar limb.

I imagine the choice of north pole for impact site is driven by the desire to test the theory that lunar soil there could harbor substantial ice deposits.