Author(s): Chip Shearer
Co-Author(s):
Panel Selection: Inner Planets
Institution: University of New Mexico
The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of a Lunar Geophysical Network (LGN) mission to the Moon. It was conducted by Marshall Space Flight Center''s, Robotic Lunar Lander Development Project team in partnership with the Johns Hopkins University/Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL). This study was documented based on previous trades, analysis and options for concepts developed by the team over the last 18 months, with a goal of determining whether such a mission could be accomplished within a Principal Investigator (PI)-led mission cost cap (e.g. New Frontiers). The mission focuses on the scientific rationale for deploying a global, long-lived network of geophysical instruments on the surface of the Moon to understand the nature and evolution of the lunar interior from the crust to the core.