Featured Images
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
New Impact Crater on the Moon!
New impact crater on the Moon! Since this crater is not visible in images from the Apollo 15 mission, it formed sometime in the last 38 years. The new crater is only ~10 meters (30 feet) across, but its bright ejecta extends much...
Published on 27 Jul 2010
Mare Humboldtianum Constellation region of interest
Small crater and associated boulders near the center of the Constellation region of interest in Mare Humboldtianum, located at the mare-highlands boundary. Note the different textures of the highlands (in the lower left) and the mare...
Published on 03 Jun 2010
Marius Hills Constellation region of interest
Rim of a large sinuous rille on the western edge of the Marius Hills Constellation region of interest, showing materials that have slumped into the bottom of the sinuous rille towards the northwest as well as (possibly) outcrop, a prime...
Published on 01 Jun 2010
Rima Bode: Constellation region of interest
LROC NAC closeup of a small fresh crater (230 m across) with very dark ejecta within the regional pyroclastic deposit in the highlands near Rima Bode II. This site is near a NASA Constellation region of interest. This crater has...
Published on 18 May 2010
Retracing the Steps of Apollo 15: Constellation Region of Interest
The third and final EVA of Apollo 15 brought the astronauts to the edge of Hadley Rille (lower left). Disturbed regolith is observed along the crater rim at station 9 and at the edge of the rille at station 9A. Rover tracks are visible...
Published on 16 Apr 2010
Rimae Prinz Region - Constellation Region of Interest
A sinuous rille created by a lava flow snakes around the base of a massif in the Prinz-Harbinger region on the Moon. Image width is 1.46 km, LROC NAC frame M102429075L [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 15 Apr 2010
The Apollo 15 Lunar Laser Ranging Retroreflector - A Fundamental Point on the Moon!
Close-up of the Apollo 15 landing site sowing the Falcon descent stage and other hardware from the mission. In this calibrated image the Lunar Laser Ranging RetroReflector (LRRR) array appears as the (circled) tiny white rectangular...
Published on 13 Apr 2010
Soviet Union Lunar Sample Return Missions
On February 21, 1972, Luna 20 soft landed in the rugged highlands between Mare Fecunditatis and Mare Crisium. The next day a sample return capsule blasted off carrying 55 grams of lunar soil. The Luna 20 descent stage still sits...
Published on 15 Mar 2010
Aristarchus Plateau (2): Pyroclastic Deposit
NAC Frame M111945148R. Part of the vast pyroclastic deposit near a Constellation Program Region of Interest located on the Aristarchus plateau is visible in this image. View is 537 m across [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 21 Jan 2010
Exploring the Apollo 17 Site
The Apollo 17 Lunar Module Challenger descent stage comes into focus from the new lower 50-km mapping orbit, image width is 102 meters [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 28 Oct 2009
Bouncing, Bounding Boulders!
Many boulder trails are found on the lunar crater walls and basin massifs. Some of the trails are smooth and nearly straight while others are curvy or gouge into the surface. In many cases by following a boulder's trail you are led back...
Published on 15 Oct 2009
Asymmetric Ejecta
Distinctive asymmetrical ejecta surrounding a 140 meter diameter crater in the lunar highlands. Crater is located on the northeastern rim of the eroded (pre-Nectarian) crater Hommel at -52.9° N and 34.6° E. Image width is 600 meters and...
Published on 13 Oct 2009
Surveyor 1 - America’s first soft lunar landing
Surveyor 1 spacecraft sitting silently on Oceanus Procellarum, the first US spacecraft to land on another planet (June 2, 1966). The image was taken in the lunar afternoon such that the sun in low on the western horizon and the 3.3...
Published on 30 Sep 2009
First Look: Apollo 12 and Surveyor 3
First look at Apollo 12 landing site, the Lunar Module descent stage, Experiment package (ALSEP) and Surveyor 3 spacecraft are all visible along with astronaut tracks (unmarked arrows). Image is 824 meters wide, north up...
Published on 03 Sep 2009
Necho Crater
Cracks form in the impact melt sheet on the floor of Necho Crater. Image width is 1.04 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 21 Aug 2009
Rille within a rille!
Sinuous rille winding its way across a much larger rille in the heart of the Aristarchus Plateau, image width 1.76 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 18 Aug 2009
Hummocks and blocks and craters
Hummocks and blocks on the ejecta blanket of Tsiolkovskiy crater. Image width is 830 meters [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].
Published on 04 Aug 2009
LROC’s First Look at the Apollo Landing Sites
Four times enlargement of an uncalibrated LROC NAC image showing the Apollo 14 lunar module (LM Antares) and the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package (ALSEP). Note the astronaut tracks between the two artifacts [NASA/GSFC/Arizona...
Published on 16 Jul 2009