What will the extended mission tell us?
After one year, we expect to have enough fuel left for Prospector to drop down to an elliptical orbit with a minimum altitude of 6 miles (10 km). All five instruments will continue to function. The extended mission will enable us to obtain data with much better resolution, since the spacecraft will be in orbit longer, and Prospector will be closer to the surface. Some of the instruments provide better data over a longer period of time, and others do so at closer distances.
