Grail gravity satellites slam into Moon

[Craig]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-20761903

 

The US space agency's (Nasa) Ebb and Flow gravity mapping satellites have ended their mission to the Moon.

 

The duo were commanded to slam into a 2km-high mountain in the far lunar north.

 

The deliberate ditching avoids the possibility of an uncontrolled descent on to locations of historic importance, such as the Apollo landing sites.

 

Nasa's deep-space radio-tracking system confirmed the loss of signal from the satellites just before 22:30 GMT.

 

http://news.discovery.com/space/short-productive-life-of-nasa-moon-probes-over-121217.html

 

For nearly a year, a pair of small identical science satellites have been circling the moon, enabling scientists to piece together detailed gravity maps showing what is beneath the battered lunar surface.

 

That mission came to an end on Monday when the probes, nicknamed Ebb and Flow, flew themselves into a mountain near the moon's northern pole, a dramatic, but planned finale to a successful year-long mission.