Monday, August 3, 2009

Magma Ocean theory advances, 'First Results' from Chandrayaan-1's 3M

Extent of M3 “warm” data-take across the Orientale Basin. The basemap is Clementine UVVIS 750 nm data and LAC chart locations. Basin rings are labeled in blue.

Minerology of the Lunar Crust in Spacial Context: First Results from the Moon Minerology Mapper (M3) - Pieters, et.al. (Dept. Geological Sciences, Brown University, AIG, NASA JPL, USGS (Denver), Bear Fight Center, WA, ISRO-PRL, ISRO-NRSA, ACT, NASA Goddard, College of Charleston, PSI, U. of MD, U. of TN. & DARPA.)

Introduction: India’s Chandrayaan-1 successfully launched October 22, 2008 and went into lunar orbit a few weeks later. Commissioning of instruments began in late November and was near complete by the end of the year. Initial data for NASA’s Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) were acquired across the Orientale Basin and the science results are discussed here. M 3 image-cube data provide mineralogy of the surface in geologic context. A major new result is that the existence and distribution of massive amounts of anorthosite as a continuous stratigraphic crustal layer is now irrefutable.

Read the published report HERE,
Chandrayaan-1 Science Team Meeting, Bangalore 9-11 Mar. 2009

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