Mission PI support for MoonLITE Phase A

MoonLITE是一项由英国主导的月球使命，涉及在月球表面以下3米处和不同位置放置四个穿透器。一艘绕月飞行的航天器将把这些探测器的信息中继到地球。在为期一年的使命中，穿透器将进行一系列科学测量，包括测震、地球化学、热流以及探测和确定永久遮蔽的极地陨石坑内的挥发物。将进行A阶段，详细审查使命的可行性，特别是探索替代技术解决办法。A阶段将包括两项工业研究（一项在使命一级，一项在下降舱一级）和一项通过向联合王国侵彻体联合体提供赠款对侵彻体本身进行的研究。NASA也将支持这项研究。此处申请的赠款用于支持使命PI协调本研究。考虑到使命的复杂性和所涉及的一些技术的新奇，再加上英国和美国的维度，这项研究是不平凡的。

MoonLITE is a proposed UK led mission to the Moon involving the placement of four penetrators 3m below the lunar surface and diverse locations. A lunar orbiting spacecraft will relay information from the pentrators to Earth. During a one year mission the penetrators would make a range of scientific measurements including seismometry, geochemistry, heat flow and the detection and characterisation of volatiles within the permanently shaded polar craters. A phase A will be undertaken which will examine the feasibiltiy of the mission in detail, exploring in particular alternative technical solutions. The phase A will comprise two industrial studies (one at mission level, one at descent module level) and a study of the penetrators themselves through a grant to the UK penetrator consortium. NASA will also support the study. The grant requested here is to support the Mission PI in his role to coordinate this study. Given the complexity of the mission and novelty of some of the technologies involved, plus the UK-US dimension this study is non-trivial.