List of retroreflectors on the Moon explained

Retroreflectors are devices which reflect light back to its source. Six were left at six sites on the Moon by three crews of the Apollo program, two by remote landers of the Lunokhod program, and one by the Chandrayaan program.[1] Lunar reflectors have enabled precise measurement of the Earth–Moon distance since 1969 using lunar laser ranging.[2]

Several unsuccessful attempts to land retroreflectors on the lunar surface have been made, and several future attempts are planned.

Successfully placed reflectors

OperatorMissionNameDateLocationCoordinatesSizeStatusComment
NASAApollo 11LRRR21 July 1969Mare Tranquillitatis0.6734°N 23.4731°W[3] 46×46 cm[4] [5]
Soviet UnionLuna 17Lunokhod 117 November 1970Mare Imbrium38.3152°N -35.008°W44×19 cm Rediscovered in 2010[6] [7] [8] [9]
NASAApollo 14LRRR31 January 1971Fra Mauro formation-3.6442°N -17.4786°W46×46 cm[10]
NASAApollo 15LRRR31 July 1971Hadley–Apennine26.1334°N 3.6285°W105×65 cm[11]
Soviet UnionLuna 21Lunokhod 215 January 1973Le Monnier crater25.8323°N 30.9221°W44×19 cm[12] [13]
ISROChandrayaan-3Vikram23 August 2023Statio Shiv Shakti5.11 cm diameter[14] [15] [16] [17] [18]

Attempted and planned reflectors

OperatorMissionNameDateLocationCoordinatesStatusComment
SpaceIL, IAIBeresheetBeresheet11 April 2019Mare Serenitatis32.5956°N 19.3496°W[19] [20] [21]
ISROChandrayaan-2Vikram6 September 2019[22] [23]
Moon ExpressLunar ScoutMoonLIGHT on MX-1EJuly 2020Malapert Mountain-84.9°N 12.9°W[24] [25]
AstroboticMission OneLRA on PeregrineMay 2023Lacus Mortis[26]
RoscosmosLuna 25Luna 25August 2023Boguslawsky (crater)[27] [28] [29]
Intuitive MachinesIM-1LRA on Nova-C IM-1February 2024Malapert (crater)[30]

See also

Notes and References

  1. http://physics.ucsd.edu/~tmurphy/apollo/lrrr.html Lunar Retroreflectors
  2. Slava G. Turyshev: From Quantum to Cosmos: Fundamental Physics Research in Space (2009), p. 300
  3. Wagner. R. V.. Speyerer. E. J.. Burns. K. N.. Danton. J.. Robinson. M. S.. Revised Coordinates for Apollo Hardware. 2012-08-01. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences. English. Copernicus GmbH. XXXIX-B4. 517–521. 10.5194/isprsarchives-XXXIX-B4-517-2012. 2012ISPAr39B4..517W . free.
  4. Web site: Newman. Michael E.. 2017-09-26. To the Moon and Back … in 2.5 Seconds. 2021-01-27. NIST. en.
  5. Web site: What Neil & Buzz Left on the Moon: A cutting-edge science experiment left behind in the Sea of Tranquility by Apollo 11 astronauts is still running today. . National Aeronautics and Space Administration . 20 July 2004 . 1 August 2012.
  6. Web site: 27 April 2010. Lost Soviet Reflecting Device Rediscovered on the Moon. 2021-01-26. Space.com. en.
  7. Web site: LROC Observation M114185541R. 8 August 2012. Arizona State University.
  8. Web site: Lunokhod 1 Revisited Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera. 2019-10-08. lroc.sese.asu.edu.
  9. Web site: USSR – Luna 17.
  10. Web site: Apollo 14: The Eighth Mission: The Third Lunar Landing: 31 January–09 February 1971. https://web.archive.org/web/20041114153331/https://history.nasa.gov/SP-4029/Apollo_14a_Summary.htm. 14 November 2004. 8 August 2012. National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
  11. Web site: Archinal, Brent. 13 April 2010. The Apollo 15 Lunar Laser Ranging Retroreflector – A Fundamental Point on the Moon!. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20130113024629/http://www.lroc.asu.edu/news/index.php?%2Farchives%2F180-The-Apollo-15-Lunar-Laser-Ranging-Retroreflector-A-Fundamental-Point-on-the-Moon%21.html. 13 January 2013. 1 August 2012. Arizona State University.
  12. Web site: USSR – Luna 21.
  13. Web site: NASA – NSSDCA – Spacecraft – Details. 2019-10-08. nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov.
  14. Web site: Chandrayaan 3 – LRA.
  15. Web site: Chandrayaan-3 . 15 August 2023 . ISRO.
  16. News: India lands spacecraft near south pole of moon in historic first . Dhillon . Amrit . 2023-08-23 . 2023-08-23 . The Guardian.
  17. Web site: Laser Instrument on NASA’s LRO Successfully ‘Pings’ Indian Moon Lander . 30 January 2024.
  18. Web site: Instrument on Chandrayaan-3 lander started serving as a location marker near lunar south pole . 30 January 2024.
  19. https://www.digitaltrends.com/cool-tech/beresheet-crash-manual-command/ Beresheet crash caused by manual command, but reflector device may have survived.
  20. Web site: Warner. Cheryl. 2019-04-10. Update on First Private Robotic Spacecraft Attempt at Moon Landing. 2019-04-12. NASA.
  21. https://phys.org/news/2019-05-israeli-spacecraft-beresheet-site-moon.html Israeli spacecraft Beresheet crash site spotted on moon
  22. Web site: September 8, 2019. Vikram lander located on lunar surface, wasn't a soft landing: Isro. 2019-10-08. The Times of India. en.
  23. News: Bartels. Meghan. 24 March 2019. How NASA Scrambled to Add Science Experiments to Israeli, Indian Moon Probes. 25 March 2019.
  24. http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/missions/space-observatories/international-lunar-observatory-new-astrophysical-perspective/ Internatioinal Lunar Observatory to offer a new astrophysical perspective
  25. https://umdrightnow.umd.edu/news/umd-italy-moonex-join-put-new-laser-reflecting-arrays-moon UMD, Italy & MoonEx Join to Put New Laser-Reflecting Arrays on Moon
  26. Web site: Etherington. Darrell. January 23, 2020. NASA reveals the payloads for the first commercial moon cargo deliveries. 2021-03-02. TechCrunch. en-US.
  27. Web site: Luna-25 (Luna-Glob Lander) Payload . 2023-08-15 . www.iki.rssi.ru.
  28. Web site: NASA - NSSDCA - Spacecraft - Details . 2023-08-15 . nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov.
  29. News: Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft crashes into the moon, ending its bid to reach the lunar south pole . 2023-08-20 . 2023-08-20 . Associated Press.
  30. Web site: Intuitive Machines-1 Orbital Debris Assessment Report (ODAR) Revision 1.1 . . . 22 April 2021 . 24 April 2021.