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Global Distribution of Lunar Impact Melt FlowsIn this study, we analyzed the distribution and properties of 146 craters with impact melt deposits exterior to their rims. Many of these craters were only recently discovered due to their unusual radar properties in the near-global Mini-RF data set. We find that most craters with exterior deposits of impact melt are small, less than 20 kilometers, and that the smallest craters have the longest melt flows relative to their size. In addition, exterior deposits of impact melt are more common in the highlands than the mare. This may be the result of differing target properties in the highlands and mare, the difference in titanium content, or the greater variation of topography in the highlands. We find that 80 percent of complex craters and 60 percent of simple craters have melt directions that are coincident or nearly coincident with the lowest point in their rim, implying that pre-existing topography plays a dominant role in melt emplacement. This is likely due to movement during crater modification (complex craters) or breached crater rims (simple craters). We also find that impact melt flows have very high circular polarization ratios compared to other features on the Moon. This suggests that their surfaces are some of the roughest material on the Moon at the centimeter to decimeter scale, even though they appear smooth at the meter scale.
Document ID
20150008273
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
C D Neish (Florida Institute of Technology Melbourne, Florida, United States)
J Madden (Franklin & Marshall College Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States)
L M Carter (Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland, United States)
B R Hawke (University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, Hawaii, United States)
T Giguere (University of Hawaii at Manoa Honolulu, Hawaii, United States)
V J Bray (University of Arizona Tucson, Arizona, United States)
G R Osinski (Western University London, Ontario, Canada)
J T S Cahill (Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, Maryland, United States)
Date Acquired
May 18, 2015
Publication Date
June 12, 2014
Publication Information
Publication: Icarus
Publisher: Science Direct
Volume: 239
Issue Publication Date: September 1, 2014
ISSN: 0019-1035
URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S001910351400311X
DOI: doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2014.05.049
Subject Category
Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration
Report/Patent Number
GSFC-E-DAA-TN21224
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Portions of document may include copyright protected material.
Keywords
Cratering
Moon
Impact processes
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