Background
The Moon is a cornerstone for understanding the geological evolution of rocky bodies, yet fundamental features are still unexplained. The Moon is also the focus of US and international space exploration for the next decade or more, ensuring that the pace of data from robotic and crewed missions will be robust. SwRI already has a strong footprint in lunar robotic instruments, missions, and research: further development such as this project will contribute to the Institute’s ongoing leadership in lunar exploration.
Approach
This project aims to map the electrical conductivity of the lunar upper mantle (depths up to a few hundred miles) in order to assess why the principal geological “terranes” of the Moon are so different. The electrical conductivity will be determined from the inductive response of the Moon to abrupt changes in the flow of the solar wind. This in turn is measured by comparing magnetic fields at a distant satellite to one orbiting close to the Moon. The nearby satellite sweeps over all longitudes each month, so even allowing for intermittent solar-wind events, global sampling is achieved.
Accomplishments
The project has demonstrated preliminary modeling that recovers lunar electrical conductivity from the comparison of magnetic fields measured simultaneously by the distant and the nearby satellite. However, progress has been delayed by the PI’s involvement in analyzing results from the Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder, a related electromagnetic experiment that operated successfully on the Moon’s surface in March. The pace of the IR&D work is expected to accelerate this fall, with the project finishing on time in the spring.