Astronomy Picture of the Day

   [1]Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                                 2023 May 5
    [2]See Explanation. Clicking on the picture will download the highest
                        resolution version available.

                          Shackleton from ShadowCam
      Image Credit: [3]NASA, [4]ShadowCam, [5]Korea Aerospace Research
                   Institute, [6]Arizona State University

   Explanation: Shackleton crater lies at [7]the lunar south pole. Peaks
   along the 21 kilometer diameter are in sunlight, but Shackleton's floor
   is in [8]dark permanent shadow. Still, this image of the shadowed rim
   wall and floor of Shackleton crater was [9]captured from NASA's
   ShadowCam, an instrument on board the Korea Pathfinder Lunar Orbiter
   (KPLO) launched in August 2022. About 200 times more sensitive than,
   for example, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's Narrow Angle Camera,
   ShadowCam was designed image the permanently shadowed regions of the
   lunar surface. Avoiding direct sunlight, those regions are expected to
   be [10]reservoirs of water-ice and other volatiles deposited by ancient
   cometary impacts and useful to future Moon missions. Of course, the
   permanently shadowed regions are still illuminated by reflections of
   sunlight from [11]nearby lunar terrain. In this stunningly [12]detailed
   ShadowCam image, an arrow marks the track made by a single boulder
   rolling down Shackleton crater's wall. The image scale is indicated at
   the bottom of the frame.

                  Tomorrow's picture: twilight in a flower
     __________________________________________________________________

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    Authors & editors: [24]Robert Nemiroff ([25]MTU) & [26]Jerry Bonnell
                                 ([27]UMCP)
          NASA Official: Phillip Newman [28]Specific rights apply.
              [29]NASA Web Privacy Policy and Important Notices
                A service of: [30]ASD at [31]NASA / [32]GSFC,
                         [33]NASA Science Activation
                           & [34]Michigan Tech. U.

References

   1. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
   2. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/image/2305/shackleton_arrow.png
   3. https://www.nasa.gov/
   4. https://www.shadowcam.asu.edu/
   5. https://www.kari.re.kr/eng/sub03_07_01.do
   6. https://sese.asu.edu/
   7. http://lroc.sese.asu.edu/posts/237
   8. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap110423.html
   9. https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-shadowcam-images-lunar-south-pole-region
  10. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap101025.html
  11. http://lroc.sese.asu.edu/posts/1247
  12. https://www.shadowcam.asu.edu/images/1284
  13. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230504.html
  14. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/archivepix.html
  15. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/apsubmit2015.html
  16. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/aptree.html
  17. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/apod/apod_search
  18. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/calendar/allyears.html
  19. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod.rss
  20. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/edlinks.html
  21. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html
  22. http://asterisk.apod.com/discuss_apod.php?date=230505
  23. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap230506.html
  24. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/faculty/Nemiroff.html
  25. http://www.phy.mtu.edu/
  26. https://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/htmltest/jbonnell/www/bonnell.html
  27. http://www.astro.umd.edu/
  28. https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/lib/about_apod.html#srapply
  29. https://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/HP_Privacy.html
  30. https://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/
  31. https://www.nasa.gov/
  32. https://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/
  33. https://science.nasa.gov/learners
  34. http://www.mtu.edu/