The Daily Bulletin Archive

By Mary A. Durlak

The United States is en route to the moon again—and this time, Buffalo State is represented on the science team by Kevin Williams, assistant professor of earth sciences and science education and a planetary geologist.

The purpose of the trip, according to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Web site, is to lay the groundwork for establishing a lunar outpost.

Williams is an expert in using radar to investigate the surface of planets and other bodies in space, such as the moon. “I always wanted to be an astronaut,” he said. “I’m interested in astronomy, but what I really like is exploring planets.”

Strictly speaking, the moon is not a planet, but it is part of the Earth system. Most scientists agree that the moon was formed when a meteorite the size of Mars crashed into Earth and the debris formed the moon in orbit around the planet.

Earth’s companion has been waxing and waning for about 4.5 billion years, but researchers still don’t know if it has water. That’s one of the things that Williams hopes to learn.

The LRO will be circling the moon and deploying many devices to study its surface. Among them is the mini-RF (miniature radio frequency), a new technology that uses a form of radar to explore the surface of the moon and the first few feet beneath it.

“Radar can tell you something about the texture of the surface,” Williams explained. “You can gather some information about its roughness and craters, which can help identify possible landing sites. Combined with other instruments, you can gather information about the composition of the material.” Analyzing data obtained through this technology is one of Williams’s areas of expertise.

Williams has also been involved in mapping the surface of Mars and exploring Earth’s high arctic regions with the McGill University research team at the McGill Arctic Research Station not far from the North Pole.

The lunar mission will orbit the moon’s poles about 50 kilometers (31 miles) above the surface. The polar regions are significant because they are possible locations for the next manned visit to the moon. These regions are relatively unexplored and may contain ice in craters that are always in shadow.

Among the mini-RF’s capabilities is the ability to detect ice deposits. If ice exists on the moon, it could be a source of water for a lunar outpost for researchers.

“It’s pretty exciting stuff to be doing,” said Williams. “I can’t wait for the data to start coming in. I fully expect that by 2020, we’ll be stepping on the moon again.”