Mission Details
| Mission Name: SMART-1 |
| Mission Type: Lunar Orbiter |
| Operator: ESA (European Space Agency) |
| Launching State: France/European Union |
| Location: Lacus Excellentiae |
| Latitude: -34.4 |
| Longitude: -46.2 |
| Launch Date: 27 September 2003, 23:14:46 UT |
| Landing Date: 3 September 2006, 05:42:22 UT |
| Objects on or Related to Site: SMART-1 |
| Image Source: ESA |
Description
SMART, which stands for Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology was a techonology test of new solar-electric propulsion, communication techniques and miniataurized science instruments.
Read more:
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/smart-1/in-depth/
Heritage Consideration
SMART-1 made the first comprehensive inventory of key chemical elements in the lunar surface.
Object on or Related to Site
| Object Name: SMART-1 | |
| Cospar: 2003-043C | |
| Norad: N/A | |
| Location: Precise location unknown or undisclosed. | |
| Launch Date: 27 September 2003, 23:14:46 UTC | |
| Landing Date: 3 September 2006, 05:42:22 UTC | |
| Deployment: N/A | |
| End Date: N/A | |
| Function: Technology test. | |
| Image Source: ESA |
Description
The Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology (SMART-1), spacecraft was a technology demonstrator built by the European Space Agency (ESA) to test solar-electric propulsion and other deep space technologies on a mission to the Moon.
SMART-1 was the first European spacecraft to enter orbit around the Moon.
A second part of the mission focused on studying polar mountain peaks that are in perpetual sunlight as well as the dark areas of the lunar surface that might contain ice.
The spacecraft had a French-built Hall effect thruster (known as PPS®1350) derived from a Russian ion propulsion system originally designed by OKB Fakel, a Russian company that specializes in attitude control thrusters using ion and plasma sources. The thruster used xenon propellant to generate 88 millinewtons (mN) of thrust (about the weight of a postcard) and a specific impulse of 1,650 seconds.
The engine was powered by solar arrays which generated the 1,350 watts needed to power the ion engines.
