PIA12223: Water Abundance Dependent on Temperature
 Target Name:  Moon
 Is a satellite of:  Earth
 Mission:  Deep Impact
 Spacecraft:  Deep Impact
 Product Size:  1000 x 750 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  University of Maryland
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA12223.tif (2.253 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA12223.jpg (61.51 kB)

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Original Caption Released with Image:

This chart highlights observations from NASA's Deep Impact mission of the northern polar regions of the moon acquired on June 9, 2009. The image at left is a map of the moon taken by the U.S. Clementine satellite -- the rest of the images are different representations of Deep Impact data, including measurements of brightness, temperature, and strength of a signature for water and hydroxyl molecules. The water signature varies significantly across the lunar surface; the strength of the signature is not correlated with terrain type but is highly dependent on temperature.

Since successfully carrying out its spectacular impact experiment at comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005, the Deep Impact spacecraft has been on an extended mission, called Epoxi, which culminates in a flyby of comet Hartley 2 on November 4, 2010. The spacecraft observed the moon for calibration purposes on several occasions en route to the second comet.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Maryland

Image Addition Date:
2009-09-24