Apollo 15 and 16
The Apollo 15 and 16 missions were the ninth and tenth of NASA's manned missions to the moon. In addition to landing on the moon, these missions each released a subsatellite which was to study particles and magnetic fields around the moon. These subsatellites, called PFS-1 and PFS-2, each included a gamma-ray detector.
Lifetime: August 1971 (first data from subsatellite PFS-1) - January 1973 (last data from PFS-1)
Country (primary): United States
Primary Science
The subsatellites released by the Apollo 15 and 16 crews were intended to study the charged particles and magnetic fields around the moon as the moon orbited the Earth.
Science Highlights
- Measurements of the cosmic gamma-ray background.