On this day in space! Sept. 3, 2006: Europe's SMART-1 spacecraft crashes into the moon in lunar death dive
On September 3, 2006, the European Space Agency's SMART-1 spacecraft intentionally crashed into the moon to conclude its mission. The probe, which tested solar-powered electric propulsion, provided valuable data on lunar mineral composition and impact mechanics.
Why it matters
The mission demonstrated the viability of low-cost, high-tech space exploration and provided a unique opportunity for Earth-based observation of lunar impacts.
The SMART-1 moon mission was built to test an ion drive, but even its death crash yielded lunar science.
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Click for next article Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter On Sept. 3, 2006, a European satellite named SMART-1 crashed into the moon ! This wasn't actually as disastrous as it sounds, because the spacecraft did it on purpose.
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