This discovery comes from a mission that has already given us a lot of valuable information, including the search for oxygen in the Martian atmosphere.
According to recently recorded information, NASA is set to announce a new discovery on the Moon, the oldest satellite on Earth. And that would be an “extremely exciting” discovery, in the words of the US Space Agency.
This discovery should be extremely desirable, as it comes from the SOFIA (Stosospheric Research Aircraft for Infrared Astronomy) program. It’s the world’s largest aerial observatory – actually a Boeing 747 modified to carry a large reflecting telescope.
Unlike ground-based astronomical observatories, SOFIA hovers at an altitude of 11 km, in the planet’s stratosphere. Here, the observatory can pass 99% of the atmosphere by blocking infrared waves, allowing it to study infrared rays coming from outer space.
Overall, SOFIA is a fairly busy aircraft. Previously, it had detected signs of oxygen in Mars’ atmosphere, as well as numerous infrared rays emitted by collisions between extrasolar planets. Not to mention, SOFIA has also identified the centers of galaxies in the universe, including our own Milky Way.
This time, SOFIA is aiming for a closer target – the Moon. The new discovery will complement their efforts to study the Moon, to make space travel easier, NASA said.
It is known that the press conference will take place at 11 p.m. on October 26 (Vietnam time), with the participation of Naseem Rangwala – an expert from SOFIA, and Jacob Bleacher – an expert from NASA. According to what has been revealed, it is likely that this information is related to the mission to bring humans back to the Moon in 2024, and to prepare for the exploration of Mars in 2030.
