Featured Images
Slipher Crater: Fractured Moon in 3-D
Over time, the surface of the Moon fractures and buckles as it cools and shrinks, resulting in spectacular landforms. Stereo images provided by the LROC NAC allow a detailed look at these amazing features; view is to the east,...
Published on 12 Oct 2010
Eratosthenes Central Peak
Sunrise image of the Eratosthenes central peak summit. LROC NAC image M131725388L; width is 600 m [NASA/GFSC/Arizona State University].
Published on 08 Oct 2010
Terraces in Eratosthenes Crater
Like many complex craters on the Moon, Eratosthenes exhibits terraces (upper left) within its rim. Terraces form as the walls of the crater slump down, creating a landslide while leaving the upper portion of the wall intact. LROC NAC...
Published on 07 Oct 2010
Eratosthenes Crater and the Lunar Timescale
The northeast rim of Eratosthenes crater is easily seen as the change in reflectance due to differing slopes - higher reflectance terrain in the lower left is the steeply sloping interior. LROC NAC image M117562615L, image width is 600...
Published on 06 Oct 2010
The Lunar North Pole
Summer-time at the lunar north pole captured by the LROC Wide Angle Camera (WAC), width ~600 km, latitude ranges from 80°N to 90°N [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 05 Oct 2010
Ejecta from Copernicus
One of the geologic features that makes Copernicus crater special is its extensive, high-reflectance ejecta rays that extend across nearby mare and superpose (overlap) ejecta from other craters - Copernican ejecta extends more than 500...
Published on 30 Sep 2010
Smooth floor in Copernicus crater
With the exception of recent impacts (such as this one) into the floor material of Copernicus, much of the northwestern floor of Copernicus appears smooth and relatively featureless (upper right corner). This region on the crater floor...
Published on 29 Sep 2010
Copernicus Crater and The Lunar Timescale
LROC NAC view of the southern rim of Copernicus crater. Downslope direction is to the upper left and the fragmented material demarcates the rough edge of the crater rim. The surface texture is still sharp and crisp indicating a...
Published on 28 Sep 2010
The Lunar South Pole
LROC Wide Angle Camera (WAC) mosaic of the south polar region, width ~600 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 27 Sep 2010
Ejecta Blanket
The pattern of ejecta from a young crater is still preserved on the floor of Van de Graaff crater. The variations in albedo (bright and dark areas in the ejecta) indicate either different surface exposure times, grain sizes, or...
Published on 23 Sep 2010
Immature Ejecta
This crater in the floor of Van de Graaff crater has a high reflectance ejecta blanket compared to the surrounding low reflectance material. The contrast in albedo is due to the crater excavating "fresh" or "immature" material from...
Published on 22 Sep 2010
Ejecta from Van de Graaff Crater
The texture of ejecta thrown from Van de Graaff Crater along the northern rim, seen from a low Sun angle in the NAC image (incidence angle is 72°). This subset of the NAC image M115177455R has a width of 980 m [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...
Published on 21 Sep 2010
New Views of Lunar Pits
Spectacular high Sun view of the Mare Tranquillitatis pit crater revealing boulders on an otherwise smooth floor. Image is 400 meters wide, north is up, NAC M126710873R [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 14 Sep 2010
Natural Bridge on the Moon!
Another amazing bit of lunar geology revealed by LROC! NAC M113168034R, north is up [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 07 Sep 2010
Necho's jumbled floor
The chaotic floor of Necho crater attests to the dynamic environment immediately after the impact event. NAC image M115502787R, scene is 960 m across [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 02 Sep 2010
Impact melt at Necho crater
Impact melt that flowed from the rim shortly after the formation of Necho crater. NAC image M134374642R, scene is 620 m across [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 01 Sep 2010
Necho's Terraces
Closeup view of the spectacular western terrace of Necho crater. NAC image M134388215R; scene width is 660 m [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 31 Aug 2010
Hummocky Terrain
NAC image M115475912R shows hummocky terrain north of the central peak of Tsiolkovskiy, still within the crater rim but outside the region flooded by mare basalt. The hummocks formed as the crater rebounded after the shock of impact...
Published on 26 Aug 2010
Central Peak/Mare Boundary
The central peak of Tsiolkovskiy crater is surrounded with mare basalt. This NAC frame shows where boulders rolled down the central peak and onto the mare basalt (note the boulder trails). The central peaks of larger lunar craters like...
Published on 25 Aug 2010
Fractures in the mare of Tsiolkovskiy Crater
Small fractures in the mare floor of Tsiolkovskiy Crater are a departure from the usual scene of smooth mare pitted with impact craters. As the mare cools, fractures like these can form, or these fractures might have formed due to...
Published on 24 Aug 2010