Exploration mass spectrometer model

The ESM-L structural thermal model during mechanical tests at the CIRA test facility in Naples, Italy. The golden blanket is a multi-layer insulation that protects the instrument from the very cold lunar polar environment. The blue wires are connected to the accelerometers used to monitor the vibration loads.

ESA’s Exploration Mass Spectrometer for LUPEX (EMS-L) will investigate the Moon’s extremely thin exosphere, a tenuous mist of atoms and molecules surrounding the lunar surface.  

The instrument will travel to the Moon no earlier than 2028 on the joint Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) mission by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Indian Space Research organisation (ISRO).