LCROSS (Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite)
NASA spacecraft launched with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter on 18 June 2009. On 9 October 2009 its spent Centaur upper stage struck the permanently shadowed floor of Cabeus crater near the lunar south pole and the shepherding spacecraft observed the plume before its own impact; NASA announced on 13 November 2009 that water was detected, and Colaprete et al. (2010) estimated water ice at 5.6 +/- 2.9% by mass in the regolith at the impact site. LCROSS instrument data and selected Earth-based observations are available from the PDS Geosciences Node archive.
Objective. Confirm the presence of water ice in a permanently shadowed crater at the lunar south pole by impact and plume observation.
Listed for scientific context. This mission published a resource finding but is not counted as a resource mission.
Facts
- Kind
- Spacecraft
- Mission type
- Prospecting
- Target
- MoonCabeus crater, lunar south poleOn the Moon map: Cabeus crater
- Launch
- 2009-06-18
- Phase
- EndedMission ended with the planned impacts on 2009-10-09 (NASA LCROSS page).
- Outcome
- SuccessBasis: agency statement
- Why it is included
- Published resource finding (science context)
Outcome statement (agency statement)
indicates that the mission successfully uncovered water during the Oct. 9, 2009 impacts into the permanently shadowed region of Cabeus cater near the moon's south pole
What comes next
This mission has ended.
Participants
Operators, payload owners, carriers and customers are recorded separately.
| Organization | Role |
|---|---|
| National Aeronautics and Space Administration | Operator |
Resources and evidence
| Resource | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Water ice | Detected |
| Volatiles | Detected |
Open evidence gaps
- Launch vehicle not captured from a primary page.
Sources
5 excerpts from 4 publicationsOne web address counts as one publication.
indicates that the mission successfully uncovered water during the Oct. 9, 2009 impacts into the permanently shadowed region of Cabeus cater near the moon's south pole
water, and other compounds represent potential resources that could sustain future lunar exploration
- [3]LCROSS
Launch June 18, 2009 Target Earth's Moon Objective Confirm the presence of water ice on the Moon
the concentration of water ice in the regolith at the LCROSS impact site is estimated to be 5.6 ± 2.9% by mass
LCROSS archives in PDS include data from the LCROSS instruments and from selected Earth-based observations sponsored by the LCROSS Project.
Cite this record
SpaceMiningData, “LCROSS (Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite)”, dataset version a00fa2c68a45, built 2026-11-11, https://spaceminingdata.com/missions/nasa-lcross.html. Record checked 2026-09-25.