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The United States could launch a mission in 2010 that would land two stationary robots on the moon to collect rock samples before returning to earth, a US scientist said here Thursday. Carle Pieters of Brown University's Department of Geological Sciences, who is involved in the US space programme, said the aim of the Moonrise Mission was to land at the moon's largest and oldest crater - the South Pole Aitken Basin. "The purpose is to study how long ago the basin was formed and return materials derived from the deep interior to earth for analysis," Pieters said. "It will also help us to understand the unique process of how basins are formed." Pieters is also the chairwoman of the International Lunar Exploration Working Group, an organisation formed to promote cooperation between nations. She said scientists in the United States were still identifying which landing spots in the basin would be good for the twin robots to gather samples. "Each robot will collect one kilogramme of rocks and fragments which will give us an insight of the basin's geological history," she told delegates at the International Conference on Exploration and Utilisation of the Moon in northern Indian city of Udaipur. More than 200 delegates from 16 countries are participating in the five-day conference ending Friday. All rights reserved. © 2004 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse. Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express 
A Decade Of Intense Battle Lies Ahead To Conquer The Moon
Udaipur, India (AFP) Nov 24, 2004The next decade will see nations scrambling to build outposts on the moon with each adapting different strategies to use it as a base to explore space, according to scientists attending a conference on lunar exploration. The United States welcomes competition while the Europeans and other national space programs favour a cooperative robotic village lunar base, a settlement where each nation has its own place on the moon, they said. |
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