Free Astronomy Magazine May-June 2019

14 MAY-JUNE 2019 ASTRONAUTICS and would be charged with obtain- ing close-up images of the lunar surface so as to assess whether it could support the weight of a spaceship. At the time, there were still doubts about the thickness and consistency of the regolith, and it tography available. The spacecraft had to make an almost vertical dive in order to superimpose successive images. To dive vertically, it was necessary to choose a target in the western hemisphere, but the dy- namic constraints of the Apollo was feared that a spacecraft might sink after landing. An ideal destination for the follow- ing missions was circumscribed by flight dynamics considerations. The initial framing should have matched the best telescopic pho- A POLLO 11 − The lunar surface beneath the lunar module. [NASA, Project Apollo Archive]