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By NASA
5 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Sunlight gleams off NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer as the dishwasher-size spacecraft orbits the Moon in this artist’s concept. The mission will discover where the Moon’s water is, what form it is in, and how it changes over time, producing the best-yet maps of water on the lunar surface.Lockheed Martin Space The small satellite mission will map the Moon to help scientists better understand where its water is, what form it’s in, how much is there, and how it changes over time.
Launching no earlier than Wednesday, Feb. 26, NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer will help resolve an enduring mystery: Where is the Moon’s water? After sharing a ride on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 launch — part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative — the small satellite will take several months to arrive in lunar orbit.
Here are six things to know about the mission.
1. Lunar Trailblazer will produce high-resolution maps of water on the lunar surface.
One of the biggest lunar discoveries in recent decades is that the Moon’s surface has quantities of water, but little about its nature is known. To investigate, Lunar Trailblazer will decipher where the water is, what form it is in, how much is there, and how it changes over time. The small satellite will produce the best-yet maps of water on the lunar surface. Observations gathered during the two-year prime mission will also contribute to the understanding of water cycles on airless bodies throughout the solar system.
2. The small satellite will use two state-of-the-art science instruments.
Key to achieving these goals are the spacecraft’s two science instruments: the High-resolution Volatiles and Minerals Moon Mapper (HVM3) infrared spectrometer and the Lunar Thermal Mapper (LTM) infrared multispectral imager. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California provided the HVM3 instrument, while LTM was built by the University of Oxford and funded by the UK Space Agency.
HVM3 will detect and map the spectral fingerprints, or wavelengths of reflected sunlight, of minerals and the different forms of water on the lunar surface. The LTM instrument will map the minerals and thermal properties of the same landscape. Together they will create a picture of the abundance, location, and form of water while also tracking how its distribution changes over time and temperature.
Fueled and attached to an adaptor used for secondary payloads, NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer is seen at SpaceX’s payload processing facility within NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida in early February 2025. The small satellite is riding along on Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 launch.SpaceX 3. Lunar Trailblazer will take a long and winding road to the Moon.
Weighing only 440 pounds (200 kilograms) and measuring 11.5 feet (3.5 meters) wide with its solar panels fully deployed, Lunar Trailblazer is about the size of a dishwasher and relies on a relatively small propulsion system. To make the spacecraft’s four-to-seven-month trip to the Moon (depending on the launch date) as efficient as possible, the mission’s design and navigation team has planned a looping trajectory that will use the gravity of the Sun, Earth, and Moon to guide Lunar Trailblazer to its final science orbit — a technique called low-energy transfer.
4. The spacecraft will peer into the darkest parts of the Moon’s South Pole.
Lunar Trailblazer’s science orbit positions it to peer into the craters at the Moon’s South Pole using the HVM3 instrument. What makes these craters so intriguing is that they harbor cold traps that may not have seen direct sunlight for billions of years, which means they’re a potential hideout for frozen water. The HVM3 spectrometer is designed to use faint reflected light from the walls of craters to see the floor of even permanently shadowed regions. If Lunar Trailblazer finds significant quantities of ice at the base of the craters, those locations could be pinpointed as a resource for future lunar explorers.
5. Lunar Trailblazer is a high-risk, low-cost mission.
Lunar Trailblazer was a 2019 selection of NASA’s SIMPLEx (Small Innovative Missions for Planetary Exploration), which provides opportunities for low-cost science spacecraft to ride-share with selected primary missions. To maintain a lower overall cost, SIMPLEx missions have a higher risk posture and lighter requirements for oversight and management. This higher risk acceptance allows NASA to enable science missions that could not otherwise be done.
6. Future missions will benefit from Lunar Trailblazer’s data.
Mapping the Moon’s water supports future human and robotic lunar missions. With knowledge from Lunar Trailblazer of where water is located, astronauts could process lunar ice to create water for human use, breathable oxygen, or fuel. And they could conduct science by sampling the ice for later study to determine the water’s origins.
More About Lunar Trailblazer
Lunar Trailblazer is led by Principal Investigator Bethany Ehlmann of Caltech in Pasadena, California. Caltech also leads the mission’s science investigation, and Caltech’s IPAC leads mission operations, which includes planning, scheduling, and sequencing of all spacecraft activities. NASA JPL manages Lunar Trailblazer and provides system engineering, mission assurance, the HVM3 instrument, and mission design and navigation. JPL is managed by Caltech for NASA. Lockheed Martin Space provided the spacecraft, integrated the flight system, and supports operations under contract with Caltech. The University of Oxford developed and provided the LTM instrument, funded by the UK Space Agency. Lunar Trailblazer, part of NASA’s Lunar Discovery Exploration Program, is managed by NASA’s Planetary Mission Program Office at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the agency’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.
News Media Contact
Karen Fox / Molly Wasser
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov
Ian J. O’Neill
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-2649
ian.j.oneill@jpl.nasa.gov
Isabel Swafford
Caltech IPAC
626-216-4257
iswafford@ipac.caltech.edu
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Last Updated Feb 26, 2025 Related Terms
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By NASA
The four crew members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 mission, including NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore, along with Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov, pose for a photo aboard the International Space StationNASA Media are invited to hear from NASA’s SpaceX Crew-9 astronauts during a news conference beginning at 11:55 a.m. EST, Tuesday, March 4, from the International Space Station.
NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Suni Williams, and Butch Wilmore will discuss their return to Earth on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
Media interested in participating must contact the newsroom at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston no later than 5 p.m. Monday, March 3, at 281-483-5111 or jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. To ask questions, media must dial into the news conference no later than 15 minutes prior to the start of the call. A copy of NASA’s media accreditation policy is online. Questions also may be submitted on social media using #AskNASA.
Crew-9 contributed to hundreds of scientific experiments, including swabbing the station’s exterior for microbes, printing 3D medical devices, and studying how moisture, orbital altitude, and ultraviolet light affect plant growth.
The crew will depart the space station after the arrival of Crew-10 and a short handover period. Ahead of Crew-9’s return, mission teams will review weather conditions at the splashdown sites off the coast of Florida prior to departure from station.
The mission is part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, which provides reliable access to space, maximizing the use of the station for research and development and supporting future missions beyond low Earth orbit by partnering with private companies to transport astronauts to and from the space station.
Follow updates on the Crew-9 mission at:
https://www.nasa.gov/station
-end-
Joshua Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Courtney Beasley
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
courtney.m.beasley@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Feb 26, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Humans in Space Astronauts Barry E. Wilmore International Space Station (ISS) Sunita L. Williams
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By NASA
6 Min Read NASA Stennis Flashback: Learning About Rocket Engine Smoke for Safe Space Travel
An image shows engineers at an early version of the test stand at the Diagnostic Testbed Facility. From 1988 to the mid-1990s, NASA Stennis engineers operated the facility to conduct rocket engine plume exhaust diagnostics and learn more about the space shuttle main engine combustion process. Credits: NASA/Stennis NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, is widely known as the nation’s largest rocket propulsion test site. More than 35 years ago, it also served as a hands-on classroom for NASA engineers seeking to improve the efficiency of space shuttle main engines.
From 1988 to the mid-1990’s, NASA Stennis engineers operated a Diagnostic Test Facility to conduct rocket engine plume exhaust diagnostics and learn more about the space shuttle main engine combustion process. The effort also laid the groundwork for the frontline research-and-development testing conducted at the center today.
“The Diagnostic Test Facility work is just another example of the can-do, will-do attitude of the NASA Stennis team and of its willingness to support the nation’s space exploration program in all ways needed and possible,” said Joe Schuyler, director of the NASA Stennis Engineering and Test Directorate.
The Diagnostic Test Facility work is just another example of the can-do, will-do attitude of the NASA Stennis team…
joe schuyler
NASA Stennis Engineering and Test Directorate Director
Tests conducted at the Diagnostic Testbed Facility played a critical safety role for engine operations and also provided a real-time opportunity for NASA Stennis engineers to learn about exhaust diagnostics. NASA/Stennis An image shows the Diagnostic Testbed Facility test stand data acquisition trailer. NASA/Stennis The Need
Envision a rocket or space vehicle launching into the sky. A trail of bright exhaust, known as the engine plume, follows. As metals wear down in the engines from the intense heat of the combustion process, the flame glows with colors, some visible, such as orange or yellow, and others undetectable by the human eye.
The colors tell a story – about the health and operation of the engine and its components. For space shuttle main engines, which flew on multiple missions, engineers needed to understand that story, much as a doctor needs to understand the condition of a human body during checkup, to ensure future engine operation.
Where better place to study such details than the nation’s premier propulsion test site? Paging NASA Stennis.
An image shows the rocket motor and thruster at the Diagnostic Testbed Facility. NASA/Stennis An image shows the Diagnostic Testbed Facility blended team of NASA personnel and contractors. Kneeling, left to right, is Brantly Adams (NASA), Felix Bircher (Sverdrup Technology), Dennis Butts (Sverdrup Technology), and Nikki Raines (Sverdrup Technology). Standing, left to right, NASA astronaut John Young, Greg Sakala (Sverdrup Technology), Barney Nokes (Sverdrup Technology), John Laboda (Sverdrup Technology), Glenn Varner (NASA), Stan Gill (NASA), Bud Nail (NASA), Don Sundeen (Sverdrup Technology), NASA astronaut John Blaha.NASA/Stennis The Facility
NASA Stennis has long enabled and supported innovative and collaborative work to benefit both the agency and the commercial space industry. When NASA came calling in the late 1980s, site engineers went to work on a plan to study space shuttle main engine rocket exhaust.
The concept for an enabling structure about the size of a home garage was born in October 1987. Five months later, construction began on a Diagnostic Testbed Facility to provide quality research capabilities for studying rocket engine exhaust and learning more about the metals burned off during hot fire.
The completed facility featured a 1,300-square-foot control and data analysis center, as well as a rooftop observation deck. Small-scale infrastructure was located nearby for testing a 1,000-pound-thrust rocket engine that simulated the larger space shuttle main engine. The 1K engine measured about 2 feet in length and six inches in diameter. Using a small-scale engine allowed for greater flexibility and involved less cost than testing the much-larger space shuttle engine.
An image shows Sverdrup Technology’s Robert Norfleet as he preps the dopant injection system for testing at the Diagnostic Testbed Facility. The goal of the facility was to inject known metals and materials in a chemical form and then look at what emissions were given off. During one test, generally a six or 12 second test, operators would inject three known dopants, or substances, and then run distilled water between each test to clean out the system.NASA/Stennis An image shows engineers Stan Gill, Robert Norfleet, and Elizabeth Valenti in the Diagnostic Testbed Facility test control center. NASA/Stennis The Process
Engineers could quickly conduct multiple short-duration hot fires using the smaller engine. A six-second test provided ample time to collect data from engine exhaust that reached as high as 3,900 degrees Fahrenheit.
Chemical solutions simulating engine materials were injected into the engine combustion chamber for each hot fire. The exhaust plume then was analyzed using a remote camera, spectrometer, and microcomputers to determine what colors certain metals and elements emit when burning.
Each material produced a unique profile. By matching the profiles to the exhaust of space shuttle main engine tests conducted at NASA Stennis, determinations could be made about which engine components were undergoing wear and what maintenance was needed.
We learned about purging, ignition, handling propellants, high-pressure gases, and all the components you had to have to make it work…It was a very good learning experience.
Glenn Varner
NASA Stennis Engineer
The Benefits
The Diagnostic Testbed Facility played a critical safety role for engine operations and also provided a real-time opportunity for NASA Stennis engineers to learn about exhaust diagnostics.
Multiple tests were conducted. The average turnaround time between hot fires was 18 to 20 minutes with the best turnaround from one test to another taking just 12 minutes. By January 1991, the facility had recorded a total of 588 firings for a cumulative 3,452 seconds.
As testing progressed, the facility team evolved into a collection of experts in plume diagnostics. Longtime NASA Stennis engineer Glenn Varner serves as the mechanical operations engineer at the Thad Cochran Test Stand, where he contributed to the successful testing of the first SLS (Space Launch System) core stage onsite.
However, much of Varner’s hands-on experience came at the Diagnostic Test Facility. “We learned about purging, ignition, handling propellants, high-pressure gases, and all the components you had to have to make it work,” he said. “It was a very good learning experience.”
An image shows the Diagnostic Testbed Facility team working in the test control center. Seated, left to right, is Steve Nunez, Glenn Varner, Joey Kirkpatrick. Standing, back row left to right, is Scott Dracon and Fritz Policelli. Vince Pachel is pictured standing wearing the headset. NASA/Stennis The physical remnants of the Diagnostic Testbed Facility are barely recognizable now, but that spirit and approach embodied by that effort and its teams continues in force at the center.
joe schuyler
NASA Stennis Engineering and Test Directorate Director
The Impact
The Diagnostic Testbed Facility impacted more than just those engineers involved in the testing. Following the initial research effort, the facility underwent modifications in January 1993. Two months later, facility operators completed a successful series of tests on a small-scale liquid hydrogen turbopump for a California-based aerospace company.
The project marked an early collaboration between the center and a commercial company and helped pave the way for the continued success of the NASA Stennis E Test Complex. Building on Diagnostic Testbed Facility knowledge and equipment, the NASA Stennis complex now supports multiple commercial aerospace projects with its versatile infrastructure and team of propulsion test experts.
“The physical remnants of the Diagnostic Testbed Facility are barely recognizable now,” Schuyler said. “But that spirit and approach embodied by that effort and its teams continues in force at the center.”
Additional Information
NASA Stennis has leveraged hardware and expertise from the Diagnostic Testbed Facility to provide benefit to NASA and industry for two decades and counting.
The facility’s thruster, run tanks, valves, regulators and instrumentation were used in developing the versatile four-stand E Test Complex at NASA Stennis that includes 12 active test cell positions capable of various component, engine, and stage test activities.
“The Diagnostic Testbed Facility was the precursor to that,” said NASA engineer Glenn Varner. “Everything but the structure still in the grass moved to the E-1 Test Stand, Cell 3. Plume diagnostics was part of the first testing there.”
When plume diagnostic testing concluded at E-1, equipment moved to the E-3 Test Stand, where the same rocket engine used for the Diagnostic Testbed Facility has since performed many test projects.
The Diagnostic Testbed Facility thruster also has been used for various projects at E-3, most recently in a project for the exploration upper stage being built for use on future Artemis missions.
In addition to hardware, engineers who worked at the Diagnostic Testbed Facility also moved on to support E Test Complex projects. There, they helped new NASA engineers learn how to handle gaseous hydrogen and liquid hydrogen propellants. Engineers learned about purging, ignition, and handling propellants and all the components needed for a successful test.
“From an engineering perspective, the more knowledge you have of the processes and procedures to make propulsion work, the better off you are,” Varner said. “It applied then and still applies today. The Diagnostic Testbed Facility contributed to the future development of NASA Stennis infrastructure and expertise.”
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Last Updated Feb 25, 2025 EditorNASA Stennis CommunicationsContactC. Lacy Thompsoncalvin.l.thompson@nasa.gov / (228) 688-3333LocationStennis Space Center Related Terms
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