Intro
Prehistory
Ancient
1600s
1700s
1800s
1900-1960
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
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2001: Euromoon - proposed European Space Agency project to land a spacecraft on the rim of the crater Aitken at the lunar south pole. This point is in perpetual sunlight and thus could provide continuous solar energy for a mission to look for putative lunar polar ices. See Nature, 6 Nov., 1997 for a few more details. The mission never happened!
2003: SELENE - (Selenological and Engineering Explorer) proposed complex Japanese mission, including an orbiter to map farside and study magnetic field, a lander, and a high altitude data relay satellite; planned lander canceled in 1997. See Science, 1 Nov. 1996 for a few details. In June 1998, the NEC Corp. was named as prime contractor, and a scaled back mission now includes a remote sensing orbiter, lander and a data relay satellite. SELENE 2 will be a lunar rover, and SELENE 3 lunar surface telescope. Space News June 13-24, 1998. Selene has not flown by 2004.
2003: Charles A. Wood - The Modern Moon: A Personal Perspective.
2003: Jean
Lacroux & Christian Legrand - Discover
the Moon. Cheery introduction to the Moon - features images and maps in two orientations, for observers with inverting telescopes (newtonians) and east-west switching scopes (Chhmidt Cassegrains and refractors with daigonals).
2004: Peter
Grego -Moon Observer's Guide. Another new introductory guide to the Moon, at a higher level than Lacraoux and Legrand.
2004: Charles A. Wood - Lunar 100 Card. In the April 2004 issue of Sky & Telescope I introduced the Lunar 100 - a Messier list for the Moon. This is a convenient card with a map on one side and the L100 list on the other.
2000-2030: Chinese Moon Exploration - Three decades of scientific mapping and construction of a manned lunar base announced as general plans by China in March, 1998.
Almost certainly more lunar missions from the Japanese, the Chinese, the Indians, commercial companies and hopefully the Americans!
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