NASA and the Italian Space Agency announced the success of the LuGRE (Lunar GNSS Receiver Experiment). As part of the experiment, the Blue Ghost spacecraft captured GPS signals on the Moon for the first time.
Traditionally, NASA engineers track spacecraft using a combination of measurements, including onboard sensors and signals from Earth-based tracking stations. However, there is an interesting alternative in the form of using GPS signals. In theory, they could be received and used by a spacecraft autonomously — even as far away from Earth as the Moon.
NASA and the Italian Space Agency decided to put this possibility to the test. The experiment involved the Blue Ghost spacecraft, which landed on the Moon on March 2. It carries 10 NASA-provided scientific instruments whose delivery was paid for under a contract awarded as part of the CLPS program. One of them is the LuGRE instrument set designed to search for GPS signals.
The experiment was a success. Blue Ghost continued to hear GPS signals on a regular basis during the flight and while in lunar orbit. And on March 3, the spacecraft successfully recorded them on the lunar surface for the first time. At that moment it was at a distance of 364,000 km from the Earth.
“On Earth, we can use GPS signals to navigate everything from smartphones to airplanes,” said Kevin Coggins, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s SCaN (space communications and navigation) program. “LuGRE now shows us that we can successfully receive and track GPS signals on the Moon. This is a very exciting discovery for lunar navigation and we hope to utilize this capability for future missions.”
The success of LuGRE means that Artemis and other lunar exploration missions will be able to take advantage of GPS signals to accurately and autonomously determine their position, velocity and time. This will be an important step towards advanced navigation systems and services for the Moon and Mars.
