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" Shown here is Gemini-North Acquisition Camera image of the Moon&amp;#039;s south pole with the LCROSS impact site near the center. The dark ring is the field lens holder for the Altair adaptive optics system; it is 25 arcsec in radius. The observers can use any bright lunar feature within this ring as a pseudo-star to guide the telescope, specifically, to keep the science detector&amp;#039;s field of view centered over the area of expected impact plume. (Photograph by C.E. Woodward, K. Roth, A. Stephens and the LCROSS Impact Team. Gemini Observatory/AURA)  NASA&amp;#039;s Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), which uses an empty fuel tank to kick up a plume in order to measure the amount of water ice on the moon, is no more. Early this morning the two-spacecraft combo careened into a crater, the first (called Centaur) serving as the impactor and the second (the Shepherding Spacecraft) measuring the plume on its own way to the surface.   The NASA video, taken by the craft itself, chronicles the end of the mission. The science and analysis is just starting. NASA has to sift through data from 9 onboard sensors as well as information from space-based and terrestrial telescopes. Let&amp;#039;s hope those craters have water\u2014without it, you can forget about permanent moon bases.   Stay tuned to PM as the results come in over the next few weeks. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.popularmechanics.com/space/moon-mars/a4696/4333053/>