A team of NASA scientists has released a stunning image of the Moon’s sunset captured by one of its cameras during the Blue Ghost lander’s 14-day mission. The camera, part of the Stereo Cameras for Lunar-Plume Surface Studies (SCALPSS) 1.1 system, took a series of images every 10 minutes as the lander descended and landed on the Moon’s surface.
The bright light in the image is sunlight reflecting off the lander, while the swirly motion represents the movement of the camera itself. The SCALPSS project has collected nearly 9,000 images during the mission, capturing a wealth of data that will help researchers understand how engine plumes from the lander affect the lunar soil.
The success of the mission and its findings are crucial as more missions are planned to visit the Moon in the coming years. The SCALPSS project is funded by NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate and was developed at Langley Research Center with support from Marshall Space Flight Center.
Source: https://www.nasa.gov/image-article/goodnight-moon-nasa-cameras-on-blue-ghost-capture-lunar-sunset