Microwave Map of Entire Moon Revealed 82
Zothecula writes "The first complete microwave image of the Moon taken by Chinese lunar satellite Chang'E-1 has been revealed. Chang'E-1 is China's first scientific mission to explore planetary bodies beyond Earth and the on-board Lunar Microwave Radiometer has made it possible for the first time to globally map the Moon in microwave frequencies. Radar observations of the Moon are unable to provide thermal information, and microwave observations taken from Earth cannot reach the far side of the moon. So Chang'E-1's (CE-1) orbit was conducted at an altitude of 200km (124 miles) and allowed it to observe every location of the moon with a nadir view and at high spatial resolution."
Re:psychedelic boobs? (Score:4, Informative)
Re:Grain of Salt (Score:4, Informative)
As the spacecraft goes around the moon it takes pictures during the day and during the night. You take the day ones and put them in one composite, and the night ones and put them in another.
The spacecraft didn't image the whole moon (a sphere!) from 200 km up, all in one shot.
It's just like this [nasa.gov] picture, where it's night all over the planet. Or this [nasa.gov] one, where it's day everywhere and there are no clouds.