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InÌýMay 2019, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)Ìýannounced theÌýlaunch of Artemis. ThisÌýnewÌýUS-government fundedÌýandÌýcrewed spaceflightÌýprogramÌýhas the goal of landing ‘the first woman and the next man’ on the south pole of the Moon by 2024.ÌýA number of international partners work with NASA on the programme, including the European Space Agency (ESA).

ArtemisÌýis the next step inÌýthe long-term goal of establishing a sustainable presence on the Moon, laying the foundation for a lunar economy and eventuallyÌýprovidingÌýa launchÌýpad for sendingÌýhumans toÌýMars by the 2030s.

AÌývitally important part ofÌýtheÌýplanningÌýand preparationÌýfor the ArtemisÌýprogram is toÌýlocate, analyse andÌýselect the most appropriateÌýlunar landing sitesÌýso thatÌýNASA’s craftÌýcan land safely.Ìý

Picking the right place to put people on the MoonÌý

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) was foundedÌýin the 1930sÌýandÌýisÌýmanaged by the nearbyÌýandÌýworld-renownedÌýCalifornia Institute of Technology (Caltech). Its primary function is the construction and operation of planetary robotic spacecraft, although it also conducts Earth-orbit and astronomy missions. Having developedÌýAmerica's first Earth-orbiting science satellite, JPL has also developed the first successful interplanetary spacecraft and has sent robotic missions to study all the planets in the solar system as well as asteroids, comets andÌýourÌýMoon.Ìý

As part of the Artemis program, the JPLÌýteamÌýwasÌýtasked with assessing the potential of current 3D imagingÌýsolutionsÌýto help identify, analyse and select various lunar landing sites that could lead to the safe exploration of the Moon by NASA and ESA astronauts.

At that pointÌýa project coordinator from NASA’s Moon Trek online portalÌýturnedÌýfor helpÌýtoÌýProfessor Jan-Peter Muller, Head of ImagingÌýof the Mullard Space Science Laboratory of Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê’s Department of Space and Climate Physics. An expert in image understanding and remote sensing, for over four decades Jan-Peter has beenÌýanÌýactive leader in the development of practical, operational solutions to environmental andÌýplanetaryÌýmapping problems using automated imaging and image interpretation.

3D modelling of the Moon’s surfaceÌý

JPL wanted Jan-Peter and his team to use the output of their very high-resolution NASA orbitalÌý0.5 to 1 metreÌýstereo cameras to create aÌý3D model and associated image for the Moon Trek portal, to aid the Artemis project and futureÌýlunar landings.

MoonÌýTrek is a web-based portalÌýintegratingÌýa suite of interactiveÌýand easy-to-useÌýtools which incorporate observations from past and current lunar missions, creating a comprehensive lunar research application.ÌýIt was developed to meet the needs ofÌýa wide range ofÌýinterested parties,Ìýfrom lunar mission planners and space scientists toÌýteachers and learners inÌýthe education sector.Ìý

Part ofÌýJan-Peter’s brief was to study Aristarchus,ÌýaÌýprominentÌýlunar impact crater lying in the north-westÌýsectionÌýof the Moon’s near side. One ofÌýthe brightest of the large formations on the lunarÌýsurface,ÌýAristarchusÌýspans almost 25 miles (40 kilometres)ÌýandÌýatÌýÌýoverÌýtwo miles (nearly four kilometres) in depth, it’s deeper than theÌýGrand Canyon.ÌýIt was originally selected for the Apollo 18 landing site.

Mosaiced images deliver theÌýperfect bigÌýpictureÌý

Jan-Peter and PhD student, Alfiah Putri,Ìýselected andÌýprocessed a large number of stereo imagesÌýfrom NASA, from which a subset was chosen.ÌýAÌýunique stereo processing systemÌýwas then applied to these imagesÌýto extract a 3D model atÌýone metreÌýas well as a co-registered 50cm image mosaic.Ìý

At that point, theyÌýcompared their results with lower resolution data from an orbitingÌýlightÌýdetection andÌýranging (LIDAR) satellite, which is used for remote sensing and the examination of a planet’s surface, before analysingÌýthe data and producingÌýa report ofÌýtheir findings.ÌýÌý

The result wasÌý128ÌýGBs of data products and an extensive report detailing each individualÌýimage as well asÌýthe final mosaiced product and their verification. The final mosaiced products areÌýcurrentlyÌýbeingÌýloadedÌýinto MoonÌýTrek.ÌýBesides being made available on that NASA resource, theÌýdatasets are all beingÌýmade publicly available through the new ESA Guest Storage Facility at theÌýEuropean Space Agency Centre’s (ESAC) Planetary Science Archive (PSA).ÌýThey will alsoÌýbe linked via a peer review paper to aÌýdigital object identifier (DOI) thatÌýwill enable these important resources to be easily found and utilisedÌýby lunar scientists around the world. 

DeliveringÌýa unique capability and valueÌýÌý

Jan-Peter and his colleagues at MSSL were not chosen for this specialist project purely because of their technical expertise and experience alone, but also for their ability to deliver the high quality results NASA and Moon Trek required in a timely and cost effective manner.

TheÌýclient wasÌýpleasedÌýwith theÌýmonthly reporting,Ìýthe quality ofÌýtheÌýinterim and final productsÌýandÌýthe MSSL team’sÌýfinal report and Product User Guide detailing the product format.Ìý

In addition, theyÌýwere alsoÌýpleased withÌýtheÌýdeliveryÌýplatformÌýchosen - Google DriveÌý-Ìýas no other systemÌýcould cope with the data volume involved.ÌýThis cloud-based storage s´Ç±ô³Ü³Ù¾±´Ç²ÔÌýempowers the widest possible range ofÌýusers toÌýsecurelyÌýsaveÌýandÌýshare files from just about anywhere they have access to a laptop, tablet or smartphone and an Internet connection.ÌýGoogleÌýDriveÌýisÌýalsoÌýa well-proven collaboration tool, ideal for a project of this nature.

Ultimately, the work of Jan-Peter andÌýAlfiah at Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê’sÌýMullard Space Science LaboratoryÌýhas provided Moon Trek, JPL and NASA with a better understanding of potential lunar landing sites to help enhance the future success of the Artemis program.Ìý

Meaghan Samuels, Senior Contracts ManagerÌýfor Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê Consultants (Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²ÊC), part ofÌýÏã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê Innovation & Enterprise, who helped to arrange and manage the contract between the university and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory commented,Ìý‘Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²ÊC was delighted to facilitate Professor Muller‘s work with JPL.ÌýHis team’s analysis and detailed imagery of the moon’s craters will assist inÌýidentifying possible landing spots for human lunar exploration.ÌýThe international collaboration involved in space research is a wonderful reminder of what we can do when we come together.  I can’t wait to see the results!’Ìý

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Research reported in this case study was funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) under subcontract number 1639009.

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Paul Burgoine