American spacecraft begins journey to moon

The United States' first civilian mission to the Moon in twenty-five years has begun its journey across space after separating from its booster rocket over Australia.

The unmanned satellite, called Lunar Prospector, is due to start orbiting the Moon on Sunday and then to begin a search for water that could be used to support a permanent lunar base -- something that would make human exploration of the solar system easier.

Researchers say radar readings from an earlier military probe appear to confirm that ice brought to the moon by comets has accumulated within craters at the pole permanently shaded from the sun.

But many scientists remain sceptical.

Besides the instruments needed for mapping the moon, the probe is carrying some of the ashes of lunar geologist, Gene Shoemaker, who trained many astronauts but died last year.

The ashes will be deposited on the lunar surface.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service