Lunar Ultraviolet Cosmic Imager
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| Mission type | Astrophysics |
|---|---|
| Operator | Indian Institute of Astrophysics |
| Mission duration | Telescope: few months[1] |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Z-01 lander |
| Spacecraft type | Lunar lander |
| Payload mass | Total: ~30 kg[1] LUCI: 1.85 kg[2] |
| Dimensions | Telescope: 45 cm × 15 cm [2] |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | TBD |
| Rocket | TBD |
| Launch site | TBD |
| Contractor | TBD |
| Moon lander | |
| Spacecraft component | Z-01 lander[3] |
| Landing site | Mare Imbrium |
| Main UV telescope | |
| Name | LUCI |
| Type | Spherical catadioptric[2] |
| Diameter | 30 cm [1] |
| Focal length | 945 mm [1] |
| Collecting area | 607 cm2 [1] |
| Wavelengths | near UV (200 - 320 nm)[2] |
| Resolution | ~5" [1] |
Lunar Ultraviolet Cosmic Imager (LUCI) is a small planned telescope that will be landed on the Moon to scan the sky in near UV wavelengths. It is a technology demonstrator developed by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics,[4][1][5][6] and it was planned to be one of several small payloads to be deployed by the commercial Z-01 lander developed by TeamIndus in partnership with OrbitBeyond. The mission was planned to be launched in 2020 as part of NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS).[7] On 29 July 2019 OrbitBeyond announced that it would drop out of the CLPS contract with NASA, meaning that the 2020 launch was canceled and it is unknown whether the mission will ever take place.
The science objectives of LUCI telescope are primarily to search for transient astronomic events such as supernovae, novae, tidal disruption events by massive black holes, and more exotic energetic sources such as superluminous supernovae and flashes from cosmic collisions which can be very energetic on all scales.[4][8]
LUCI will also look for faint asteroids and comets in the Solar System, especially for near-Earth objects (NEO) and potentially hazardous objects.[4] The aims are focused on UV sources not accessible by the more sensitive large space missions.[4]
