NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has sent back its first pictures since it went into orbit round the Moon.

“Our first images were taken along the moon’s terminator – the dividing line between day and night – making us initially unsure of how they would turn out,” says Mark Robinson of Arizona State University in Tempe. principal investigator for the probe’s camera (press release).

“Because of the deep shadowing, subtle topography is exaggerated, suggesting a craggy and inhospitable surface. In reality, the area is similar to the region where the Apollo 16 astronauts safely explored in 1972.”

The pictures, he says, show that LRO is nearly ready to get on with its mission of looking for potential landing sites and resources for any future return of humans to the Moon.

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Image: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/Arizona State University