|
|
|
|
|
Peak Of Eternal LightPeak of Eternal Light (PEL) describes a point on a body within the solar system which is eternally bathed in sunlight. This is due to both the bodies' rotation and the point's altitude. Based on images from the Clementine lunar mission, a team from Johns Hopkins University determined that four locations along the rim of the Peary crater are Peaks of Eternal Light. This crater lies near the north pole of the Moon. No similar regions of eternal light exist at the less-mountainous south pole. Clementine's images were taken during the northern Lunar hemisphere's summer season, and it remains unknown whether these four mountains are shaded at any point during their local winter season. Peaks of Eternal Light would be advantageous for space exploration and colonization due to the ability of an electrical device located there to receive solar power regardless of the time of day. References - Kruijff, M., The Peaks of Eternal Light on the Lunar South Pole: How they were found and what they look like, 4th International Conference on Exploration and Utilization of the Moon (ICEUM4), ESA/ESTEC, SP-462, September 2000.
|
 |
|
| Copyright 2005-2009 OnPedia.com. All Rights Reserved |
|
|