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After orbiting the moon for more than a month, the Korean Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter (KPLO) sent back stunning images. Photo/KARI/Space
Among them are two jaw-dropping black-and-white images of Earth that appear above the moon’s crater-studded horizon. One more time-lapse image of the moon’s orbit around Earth was taken over several hours.
According to NASA, KPLO is South Korea’s first exploratory space mission to leave Earth orbit. The orbiter launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on August 4, 2022.
Also read; South Korea Successfully Launches Its First Rocket to the Moon
“KPLO, also known as Danuri, a combination of the Korean words “dal” meaning moon and “nuri,” meaning enjoy, is a joint project managed by KARI and NASA,” said the United States Space Agency as quoted from the Space page, Friday (27 /1/2023).
In mid-December, the spacecraft arrived in lunar orbit and began measuring the lunar surface to identify potential landing sites for future lunar missions. Danuri’s findings could help NASA plan the next phase of its ongoing Artemis program.
Danuri will orbit the moon for 11 months, and expect to see more stunning images from the orbiter this year. On his way to the moon, Danuri photographed the lunar procession around Earth once a day for the entire month, starting on September 15.
On September 25, the Danuri orbiter took 15 images over approximately 3 hours, resulting in a stunning composite of images. Two days after arriving in lunar orbit, Danuri took this image of a giant Earth appearing above the lunar horizon.
Also read; South Korean Spaceship Successfully Captures Photos of Earth and the Surface of the Moon
The Danuri spacecraft also captured images of the Moon and Earth appearing on opposite sides of the sky. The photo was taken during Danuri’s four-month journey from Florida to lunar orbit.
Earth, as Danuri saw it as it approached its lunar orbit in November 2022. The Danuri spacecraft arrived in lunar orbit in December 2022, and recorded its first images.
(wib)
