More Details On: Concept on a Napkin The Clementine Story The Background		Background Since the mid-1980's, the Department of Defense's (DoD) BMDO has actively developed advanced sensor, spacecraft, and component technologies for missile defense systems requiring lightweight and reliable spacecraft. A joint NASA and DoD study concluded in April 1991 that a collaborative deep space mission could test these advanced technology developments and provide a significant science return. The BMDO informed NASA in January 1992 of its intention to test lightweight miniature sensors and components by exposing them to a long duration space environment while obtaining imagery of the Moon and the near-earth asteroid Geographos. NASA agreed to provide science support in return for access to data collected during the mission. The BMDO selected the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) as its executing agent with responsibility for mission design, spacecraft engineering, spacecraft manufacture and test, launch vehicle integration, terrestrial support, and flight operations. The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) provided lightweight imaging cameras developed under the sponsorship of the BMDO. The Goddard Space Flight Center provided trajectory and mission planning support to the NRL for the lunar mission phase. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) provided asteroid encounter planning and the Deep Space Network (DSN) for deep space communications and orbit determination.
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