T' LCROSS mission is a search for water on t' moon. Ya scallywag! T' LCROSS mission is goin' t' do this by sendin' a rocket crashin' into t' moon causin' a big impact and creatin' a crater, throwin' tons o' debris and potentially water ice and vapor above t' lunar surface. Ya scallywag! This impact will release materials from t' lunar surface that will be analyzed for t' presence o' hydrated minerals which would tell researchers if water is thar or not. Ahoy! T' two main components o' t' LCROSS mission are t' Shepherdin' Spacecraft (SS/C) and t' Centaur upper stage rocket. Arrr! T' Shepherdin' Spacecraft guides t' rocket t' a site selected on t' moon that has a high probability o' containin' water. Begad! Because they have only one chance with this mission in findin' water, t' researchers have t' be very precise where they program t' Shepherdin' Spacecraft t' guide t' rocket. Ya scallywag! T' Shepherdin' Spacecraft and Centaur rocket were launched together with another spacecraft called t' Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) on June 18, 2009. All three were connected t' each other for launch, but then t' LRO separated one hour after launch. T' Shepherdin' Spacecraft guided t' Centaur rocket through multiple Earth orbits, shiver me timbers, each takin' about 38 days. T' rocket then separated from t' Shepherdin' Spacecraft and will impact t' Moon on October 9, 2009 at more than twice t' speed o' a bullet, causin' an impact that results in a big plume or cloud o' lunar debris, and possibly water. Blimey! While this is happenin' t' ...