Media Resources

Latest LADEE Updates

  • Technicians prepare the LADEE Observatory in a clean room at NASA's Ames Research Center.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    04.30.2013 - NASA's LADEE Observatory recently completed the Thermal-Vacuum phase of environmental testing at NASA's Ames Research Center.

  • Earth's Moon

    Why LADEE Matters

    04.29.2013 - LADEE's observations of the lunar atmosphere and surface conditions will provide us with insights we can apply to many worlds.

  • A picture of LACE on the lunar surface surrounded by astronaut footprints.

    Is There an Atmosphere on the Moon?

    04.12.2013 - Until recently, most everyone accepted the conventional wisdom that the moon has virtually no atmosphere.

  • Two LADEE engineers work on the spacecraft in a clean room.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    03.20.13 - Engineers at Ames are about to begin the Thermal-Vacuum phase of environmental testing on NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer.

  • LLCD integrated into LADEE spacecraft

    NASA's First Laser Communication System Integrated, Ready for Launch

    03.14.13 - A new laser-based system will enable rates of satellite communications similar in capability to high-speed fiber optic networks on Earth.

  • Moon's Dust Plays Key Role in Dynamic Lunar Environment

    03.07.2013 - Dust is a major component of the material on the moon’s surface.

  • The LADEE observatory mounted on a vibration table.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    02.05.13 - Engineers at NASA’s Ames Research Center have completed all of the mechanical tests of the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer spacecraft.

  • Spacecraft technicians in a clean room at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., lift NASA's LADEE observatory off of its mount to move it to a shipping container for transport.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    1.03.13 - All of the solar panels have been attached to LADEE, and it has been prepared for transportation to the National Technical Systems mechanical testing facility.

  • NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) Observatory sits beside a radio frequency antenna inside an enclosure

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    11.29.2012 - Engineers at NASA's Ames Research Center recently completed the initial electromagnetic interference tests of NASA's LADEE Observatory.

  • LADEE Spacecraft Gets Final Instrument Installed

    10.25.12 - Engineers at NASA Ames have installed the final science instrument that will fly onboard the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer.

  • A wide-angle view of an inert Minotaur V launch vehicle is erected on the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s pad 0B at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    06.27.12 - NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) Mission is making great progress towards its 2013 launch to explore the lunar environment.

  • James Bell examines the integrated propulsion system for LADEE, the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer in a cleanroom at NASA’s Ames Research Center.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    04.09.12 - NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer has received its integrated propulsion system that will enable the spacecraft to reach the moon.

  • Artist's rendering of the LADEE spacecraft.

    LADEE Project Manager Update

    08.02.11 - NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) observatory is cleared to go forward and complete the flight hardware fabrication necessary for its 2013 mission to explore the moon.

  • Picture of coronal light taken with Clementine spacecraft

    Model Helps Search for Moon Dust Fountains

    06.10.10 - Fountains of electric dust may be responsible for a mysterious glow seen on the lunar horizon during the Apollo 17 and other missions.

  • Artist's conception of the The Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft.

    NASA Awards Contract for Moon-Bound Mission

    12.21.09 - NASA has selected Space Systems/Loral, Palo Alto, Calif., to receive a contract for the propulsion system for the Lunar Atmosphere Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) spacecraft.

  • MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. – News media are invited to interview key NASA officials and attend a dedication ceremony for the new NASA Lunar Science Institute at NASA Ames Research Center on Friday, April 11, 2008.

    NASA Sets Sights on Lunar Dust Exploration Mission

    04.09.08 - MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. -- NASA is preparing to send a small spacecraft to the moon in 2011 to assess the lunar atmosphere and the nature of dust lofted above the surface.

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Media Contacts

    Rachel Hoover
    Mission management, development, operations and science
    NASA Ames Research Center
    650-604-4789

    Nancy Neal Jones
    Payloads, testing and launch vehicle integration
    NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
    301-286-0039

    Kimberly Newton
    Lunar Quest Program Office
    NASA Marshall Space Flight Center
    256-544-0371

    Keith Koehler
    Launch vehicle and services
    NASA Wallops Flight Facility
    757-824-1579