Scientists from NASA in collaboration with National Geographic published a composite image of the Shackleton crater, located near the south pole of the Moon. It should become the landing site for the future Artemis III lunar expedition, which is scheduled for the end of 2025. The image is based on images from cameras installed on the American Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) and the South Korean Danuri spacecraft.

Some crater rims, including Shackleton’s, at the poles are high enough to block all sunlight, leaving the basins in perpetual shadow. Artemis will land crews near the south pole to study these supposed frozen water deposits. This will be a step towards the possible production of oxygen and rocket fuel.

Recently NASA built a huge underwater replica of the Moon. In a giant pool, it was much easier to “reproduce” lunar conditions.

Olesya Mayevskaya