Crater Lichtenberg and young lunar basalts tracked by SMART-1
March 2, 2006
This still image shows crater Lichtenberg in the Oceanus Procellarum region on the Moon. The AMIE camera obtained the images from a distance of between 2064 and 2162 kilometres with a ground resolution of between approximately 186 and 195 metres per pixel. The image is centred on an area located at 66.8° West, 32.6° North.
This animation, made from images taken by the Advanced Moon Imaging Experiment (AMIE) on board ESA's SMART-1 spacecraft, illustrates a special pointing mode, the so-called 'target-tracking' mode.
The images show crater Lichtenberg in the Oceanus Procellarum region on the Moon, centred on an area located at 66.8° West, 32.6° North. The AMIE camera obtained the images from a distance of between 2064 and 2162 kilometres with a ground resolution of between approximately 186 and 195 metres per pixel.
Most of the time, the SMART-1 spacecraft points exactly downwards to the Moon, so-called 'nadir-pointing'. This animation illustrates a pointing mode called the 'target-tracking' mode.
As the spacecraft moves around the Moon, it is commanded to keep pointing at the same target for a certain period of time, even though it moves over the lunar surface faster than 900 metres per second (or 3260 kilometres per hour). In this particular case, the distance between the target and the spacecraft changes by 100 kilometres every six minutes.
The prominent crater in the lower right of the image is crater Lichtenberg, with a diameter of 20 kilometres. There is a height difference between inner crater floor and surrounding lava plain of 1300 metres.
The actual target of this observation was the 'ghost' crater on the lower left of Lichtenberg. This is almost hidden by overflowed lava from Oceanus Procellarum. The SIR infrared spectrometer on board SMART-1 was measuring the composition of this area during these measurements.
This area is of high geological interest and it was selected for the study of the most recent lunar volcanism. It is thought to contain the youngest basalts on the lunar surface, with an age of about 'only' 1000 million years.
From geological mapping, scientists know that there are very young basalts around crater Lichtenberg*, but how old are they really, and how long was lunar 'mare' volcanism active?
Recent data show that lunar volcanism was active for at least 2000 million years from 4000 million years ago, ceasing at about 2000 million years. In Oceanus Procellarum, it is thought that these basalts are the very youngest basalts on the lunar surface with an age of probably less than 1000 million years. This should be compared with the age of the Moon at about 4500 million years.
The first and last images have been used to create a 3D anaglyph image that can be viewed with red/green glasses (red on the left eye). Note that the crater floor actually lies below the surrounding lava plain. The USGS topographic map can be used to compare the heights.
Crater Lichtenberg is named after the German physicist Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742-1799), who was a professor at the University of Goettingen, Germany.
Source: ESA
-
Engineers build first sub-10-nm carbon nanotube transistor
Feb 01, 2012 |
4.9 / 5 (31) |
30
-
Something old, something new: Evolution and the structural divergence of duplicate genes
Jan 31, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (7) |
1
-
The hidden nanoworld of ice crystals: Revealing the dynamic behavior of quasi-liquid layers
Jan 30, 2012 |
5 / 5 (3) |
1
-
Stock market network reveals investor clustering
Jan 27, 2012 |
3.9 / 5 (23) |
8
-
Of microchemistry and molecules: Electronic microfluidic device synthesizes biocompatible probes
Jan 26, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
More news stories
Europe stakes billion-dollar bet on new rocket
A pencil-slim rocket is scheduled to lift into space from South America on Monday, carrying a billion-dollar bet that Europe can grab a juicy slice of the market to place satellites in low orbit.
Space & Earth / Space Exploration
7 hours ago |
3.5 / 5 (2) |
0
NASA sees wide-eyed cyclone Jasmine
Cyclone Jasmine's eye has opened wider on NASA satellite imagery, as it moves through the Southern Pacific Ocean.
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
23 hours ago |
3.5 / 5 (2) |
2
NASA sees Giovanna reach cyclone strength, threaten Madagascar
Tropical Storm 12S built up steam and became a cyclone on February 10, 2012 as NASA's Terra satellite passed overhead. Residents of east-central Madagascar should prepare for this cyclone to make landfall ...
Space & Earth / Earth Sciences
23 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Political leaders play key role in how worried Americans are by climate change: study
More than extreme weather events and the work of scientists, it is national political leaders who influence how much Americans worry about the threat of climate change, new research finds.
Feb 06, 2012 |
5 / 5 (6) |
69
Humans may have helped the decline of African rainforests 3000 years ago
(PhysOrg.com) -- Large areas of rainforests in Central Africa mysteriously disappeared over three thousand years ago, to be replaced by savannas. The prevailing theory has been that the cause was a change ...
Walney offshore wind farm is world's biggest (for now)
(PhysOrg.com) -- The Walney wind farm on the Irish Sea--characterized by high tides, waves and windy weather--officially opened this week. The farm is treated in the press as a very big deal as the Walney ...
GPS court ruling leaves US phone tracking unclear
A US Supreme Court decision requiring a warrant to place a GPS device on the car of a criminal suspect leaves unresolved the bigger issue of police tracking using mobile phones, legal experts say.
Study finds that anti-diabetic medication can prevent the long-term effects of maternal obesity
In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that show that short therapy with the anti-diabetic medication ...
Netflix settlement trims 14 pct off 4Q earnings
(AP) -- Netflix pressed the rewind button on its fourth-quarter earnings after settling allegations that the video subscription service violated a consumer-privacy law.
Europeans protest controversial Internet pact
Tens of thousands of people marched in protests in more than a dozen European cities Saturday against a controversial anti-online piracy pact that critics say could curtail Internet freedom.
Google users warned of threat to smartphone wallets
Users of Google smartphone wallets were being warned on Friday that there is a way to crack pass codes intended to thwart thieves from going on illicit shopping sprees.