Bistatic Radar Experiment
The "Bistatic Radar Experiment", improvised during the mission, was designed to look for evidence of lunar water at the Moon's poles. Radio signals from the Clementine probe's transmitter were directed towards the Moon’s north and south polar regions and their reflections detected by Deep Space Network receivers on Earth. Analysis of the magnitude and polarisation of the reflected signals suggested the presence of volatile ices, interpreted as including water ice, in the Moon's surface soils. A possible ice deposit equivalent to a sizeable lake was announced. However, later studies made using the Arecibo radio telescope showed similar reflection patterns even from areas not in permanent shadow (and in which such volatiles cannot persist), leading to suggestions that Clementine’s results had been misinterpreted and may have been due to other factors such as surface roughness.
Read more about this topic: Clementine (spacecraft)
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