Laser-ranging facility at the Goddard Geophysical and Astronomical Observatory in Greenbelt, Md. The facility helps NASA keep track of orbiting satellites. Both beams shown, coming from two different lasers, are pointed at NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which is orbiting the Moon. Here, scientists are using the visible, green wavelength of light. The laser facility at the Université Côte d’Azur in Grasse, France, developed a new technique that uses infrared light, which is invisible to the human eye, to beam laser light to the Moon. Credit: NASA. |