Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Passes Preliminary Design Review
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter team said Friday it has completed its preliminary design review as part of the mission confirmation process.
The first in a series of robotic missions to the moon, the LRO is scheduled for launch in October 2008. It will carry six science instruments and a technology demonstration.
The mission goal is to develop new approaches and technologies to support the effort to send humans back to the Moon and to Mars as part of the Bush administration's Space Exploration Vision.
The team completed the review on Feb. 9, and it will release the results, along with ongoing assessments of project cost and schedule, as part of a confirmation review, sometime this spring.
At that point, NASA' officials must decide whether to authorize additional work and must set the project's cost estimate.
The mission's critical design review is scheduled for fall, and will represent the completion of detailed system design, the transition to assembly and integration of the mission elements.
Copyright 2006 by Space Daily, Distributed United Press International