Project LunaScope • NGC 224Research Trade Study • UNAPPROVED

LunaScope

Lunar South Pole Landing-Site Navigator

An interactive aerospace research environment for analyzing lunar south-pole landing site feasibility. Integrates high-resolution NASA LOLA 20-meter topographic altimetry with NAIF SPICE JPL DE421 ephemerides to evaluate 360° ray-traced solar horizon clearance, direct-to-Earth line of sight, and multi-epoch trade studies.

Topography & Slopes

NASA LOLA 20-meter DEM provides ground heights and 360° radial horizon occlusion profiling out to a 20 km horizon mask.

Posting: 20m • Datum: R=1,737.4 km

Solar Illumination

Models grazing solar elevation against local topography, evaluating full-disk, center-disk, and limb transitions with ±0.1s solver precision.

DE421 SPICE Ephemeris • Solar R=696,340 km

Earth Visibility Geometry

Tracks geometric direct-to-Earth line-of-sight and topographic occultation cycles caused by lunar libration and polar terrain ridges.

MOON_ME Topocentric Frame • Earth R=6,378.1 km

Path A — Reference DemonstrationVerified Benchmark

Connecting Ridge Reference Trade Study

Authoritative, reproducible reference mission scenario anchored to November 14, 2026. Evaluates the high-altitude ridgeline adjacent to Shackleton Crater.

Region BoundsConnecting Ridge89.2°S–89.6°S, 220°E–224°E

Simulation Scope9 Sites × 3 Epochs27 Total Combinations

Top CandidateSP-0004 (Score 0.7000)100% Cont. Sun • +1,825.9m

Secondary CandidateSP-0006 (Score 0.5250)75% Sun (6h Dark) • +1,836.6m

Path B — Configure New StudyInteractive Trade Space

Custom Landing Site & Window Search

Design a customized mission study. Configure spatial search coordinates, multi-epoch landing dates, surface stay durations, and operational gating thresholds.

Flexible Polar Coordinate Grid:Define latitude and longitude bounds within validated LOLA coverage (south of -87.5°S).

Multi-Epoch Arrival Windows:Specify mission arrival date ranges and stay durations (e.g., 24h to 14 days).

Prioritization Presets & Gating:Trade off sunlight percentage against Earth direct line of sight using multi-attribute utility weights.

NPR 7123.1D Scientific Guardrails & Verification Classification

CERTIFICATION: UNAPPROVED

Safe Landing AssessmentNOT_EVALUATED

Elevation derived from LOLA 20m DEM (spatial posting 20m; vertical uncertainty NOT_ESTABLISHED). Hazards, boulders, and touchdown dynamics are unmodeled.

Power System FeasibilityNOT_EVALUATED

Geometric solar availability does not calculate solar array orientation, cosine incidence losses, thermal degradation, or battery state-of-charge.

RF Communications ClosureNOT_EVALUATED

Geometric line of sight to Earth is not RF link closure. Antenna pointing margins, path loss, carrier frequency, and regolith multipath are unmodeled.

Utility scores represent mission-planning trade study rankings for research evaluation only, not operational flight certification.