Featured Images
Mount Marilyn: A Lunar Love Story
Mount Marilyn, with its distinctive triangular shape, served as an important navigation landmark for the Apollo 11 astronauts. Portion of LROC Wide Angle Camera mosaic, 138 km wide [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 21 Dec 2018
Fractured Crater
Interior of Komarov crater (24.59°N, 152.25°E; 85 kilometers diameter), near the southern edge of Mare Moscoviense, on the lunar farside. Image 15 km wide across center, LROC NAC M1263901757LR [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 15 Nov 2018
Another Layered Target
Copernicus crater central peak reveals the complexity of the lunar crust through distinct layering and patchy surface brightness. Image 3 km wide, M1261372886LR [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 04 Oct 2018
Layered Target
Spectacular view across the rim of Wallach crater (5700 meter diameter), acquired when LRO was 93 kilometers above the surface, M1236317761LR [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 11 Sep 2018
Aristarchus Crater
The Aristarchus crater (40 kilometer diameter, 23.73°N, 312.51°E) and plateau is one of the most geologically complex areas on the Moon. In this amazing picture, the LRO spacecraft slewed 62° (west-to-east) looking across the crater....
Published on 04 Aug 2018
Another Eclipse!
LROC WAC mosaic centered at 22.0°N and 277.5°E showing the Earth's shadow during a partial lunar eclipse on June 26, 2010. It takes LRO two hours to orbit the Moon so only during one orbit was the spacecraft in the full shadow, or...
Published on 26 Jul 2018
Another Lunar Enigma
Ina (18.66°N, 5.30°E) is one of the most enigmatic landforms on the Moon. First discovered in Apollo-era photographs, then intensely studied with modern observations, its nature is still unknown. The Sun is shining right-to-left, 40...
Published on 20 Jun 2018
Towering Peak
The summit of the unnamed peak in the foreground (50.2° S, 236.6° E) has an elevation of 6710 meters, about 7000 meters of relief relative to the low point at the bottom of the image. The two peaks on the horizon, 200 kilometers in the...
Published on 15 Jun 2018
South Massif Landslide
By lunar standards South Massif is a relatively modest mountain, but with a rich history (geologic and exploration). The massif is about 7000 meters across at the base and 2300 meters tall; M1266925685LR, incidence angle 33°, slew angle...
Published on 09 Jun 2018
Hell Q Crater
Recent impact craters are some of the most spectacular landforms on the Moon! For example, Hell Q (3.4 kilometers in diameter, 33.0° S, 355.5° E) shows off pristine impact melt that lined the crater walls and pooled in the bottom, now...
Published on 27 May 2018
Montes Carpatus
The Montes Carpatus region (16.67°N, 332.93°E) contains numerous examples of volcanic materials. The low albedo (dark) patterns may indicate pyroclastic (explosive) material that erupted over 3 billion years ago. Tobias Mayer G crater...
Published on 08 Mar 2018
On the Rim!
Spectacular oblique view of the rim of Shackleton crater (21 km diameter, 89.66°S, 129.20°E). While no location on the Moon stays continuously illuminated, three points on the rim remain collectively sunlit for more than 90% of the...
Published on 01 Feb 2018
Eclipse!
Super Moon, Blue Moon, Eclipse! All in one month! Look for a spectacular full Moon eclipsed by the shadow of the Earth on the morning of 31 January. Nearside mosaic composed of hundreds images acquired over a 14 day period...
Published on 30 Jan 2018
Zowie!
Looking down on the amazing central peak of Jackson crater, which rises 2000 meters above the crater floor. North is to the left; the area imaged measures 10 kilometers from left to right. NAC M1117602006LR [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...
Published on 09 Jan 2018
Mountains of the Moon: Zeeman Mons
The largest mountains on the Moon rival those of the Earth. Here Zeeman mons (informal name) rises more than 7,570 m (24,500 ft, 73.39°S, 213.31°E) above the floor of Zeeman crater, and the flank of Zeeman Y is just visible on the right...
Published on 20 Nov 2017
2017 Eclipse as Seen from the Moon
Earth as seen from the Moon during the total eclipse on 21 August 2017. The shadow of the Moon is centered over Hopkinsville, Kentucky (18:25:30.386 UTC or 1:25:30 pm Central Daylight Time in Kentucky; E1257979198R, NASA/GSFC/Arizona...
Published on 29 Aug 2017
Struck by a Meteoroid!
The first wild back-and-forth line (line # 22,616) records the moment (October 13, 2014 at 21:18:48.404 UTC) the left NAC radiator was struck by a meteoroid (image M1167874395L). [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University]
Published on 26 May 2017
Tycho Limb Shot!
Magnificent oblique view of the eastern side of Tycho's central peak acquired when the Sun was relatively high above the horizon. From the viewpoint of LROC the Sun was behind and a bit to the north, so shadows are mostly hidden, thus...
Published on 27 Apr 2017
Spacecraft Related Coordinates - 2016 Update
Luna 17, the intrepid lander that carried the Lunokhod 1 rover to the surface. You can make out the rover's tracks around the lander, the tight circles were formed as the Earth-bound drivers tested out the maneuverability of their just...
Published on 25 Nov 2016
Dynamic Moon!
A brand new crater on the Moon! This new 12 meter (39 foot) diameter impact crater formed between 25 October 2012 and 21 April 2013 and was discovered in a temporal ratio image (after/before) created from two Narrow Angle Camera (NAC)...
Published on 12 Oct 2016