neutron spectroscopy

On 30 July Roskosmos cosmonauts Anna Kikina and Pyotr Dubrov, members of the ISS Expedition 75, changed the configuration of BTN-M2 instrument, which works aboard Nauka module of the Russian Segment of the ISS.

Numerical modeling of the neutron albedo of the Moon and Mars and analysis of experimental data from the Russian instruments HEND, LEND, DAN, and FREND made it possible to study the behavior of the neutron component of the radiation background on the surfaces of these celestial bodies under quiet Sun conditions and during intense solar events. These results are important for assessing radiation risks for future manned space missions.

As part of the experiment, tests of special shields, wcich should protect BTN-M2 instrument's detectors from space neutrons, commenced.

January 8, 2025 BepiColombo spacecraft (ESA, JAXA) made its sixth and final Mercury flyby before arriving to Mercury in November 2026. Minimal distance from the planet's surface was 295.6 km. Several instruments of its scientific payload operated during the flyby, and among them was Russian gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer MGNS, made at IKI.

Using data gathered by Russian LEND neutron telescope onboard NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, IKI scientists studied water ice distribution within lunar polar craters Cabeus and Galimov.

Russian neutron telescope LEND aboard LRO mission (NASA) marks its 15th anniversary near the Moon on June 19, 2024. Having orbited the Moon for more than 66 thousand times, it transmitted around 105 terabytes of scientific data and registered around 20 billion lunar neutrons, We publish a new map of water ice distribution in the lunar shallow surface near the South Pole of the Moon.

Year 2022 is a joint anniversary for HEND, FREND, and DAN instruments, which, taken together, have been studying Mars from its orbit and on its surface for 35 years. Having gathered tremendous amount of data about water on the planet, they are still operating and refining our knowledge of the past and present of Mars. On September, 13, IKI is hosting an open online workshop devoted to Martian Trio and Mars.

On August 9, 2022, DAN neutron experiment onboard NASA's Curiosity rover marks 10th anniversary of operation.