CRaTER

<  <   This site is under construction   >  >

Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER)

LRO's (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) science payload of seven instruments gathers data useful to further exploration of the moon. Among those instruments is CRaTER (Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation). CRaTER characterizes the global lunar radiation environment and its biological impacts by measuring galactic and solar cosmic ray radiation behind a "human tissue-equivalent" plastic.

[NASA's description:]
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is a spacecraft orbiting the moon. Its mission has three main goals: (1) identifying safe landing sites for future human missions to the moon, (2) discovering potential resources on the moon, and (3) characterizing the radiation environment of the moon. This third goal is vital to protecting future astronauts journeying into deep space. LRO carries onboard seven scientific instruments. The primary one for analyzing the moon’s radiation environment is the Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation (CRaTER). With it scientists study both the radiation itself and how it might affect the human body.