Small-Scale Volcanism on the Lunar Mare

"Small Shield Volcanism on the Lunar Mare," (figure 1.) EPSC 2013-875 Plescia, Robinson & Joliff. Constructs in Mare Tranquillitatis. a: low-relief, low-slope with central crater; b "pancake-shaped"; c and d': hummocky, steep-sided , gc: ghost crater. LROC Wide Angle Camera high-angle incident mosaic, centered near 7.5°N, 37.5°E [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University] .

Plescia, Robinson & Jolliff
Johns Hopkins APL
Arizona State University
Washington University of St. Louis

"Small shield volcanoes having low relief and gentle slopes are scattered across the lunar mare. These features represent the terminal phases of mare volcanism and are formed by short-duration, low-volume eruptions. Composition and eruption dynamics may have varied as the morphology and color of the shields vary. There appears to be regional correlations of morphometric properties indicating larger-scale organization of the eruptions.

"Data from LRO and other missions now provide the ability to characterize each dome in terms of areal extent, topography, morphology, and color properties in unprecedented detail allowing for an analysis of their origin.

"Here, a subset of the domes are interpreted to represent a volcanic style characterized by small volume eruptions that built low-relief constructs (Fig. 1). This style of volcanism has been termed plains volcanism [14] and is common in the Tharsis region."

Small Shield Volcanism on the Lunar Mare, European Planetary Science Conference 2013, Vol. 8, #875; J.B. Plescia, Johns Hopkins University Applied Science Laboratory; M.S. Robinson, Arizona State University; B. Jolliff, Washington University, St. Louis

Small-scale shield volcanic vent structure ("d." in WAC mosaic above) south of Rupes Cauchy in Mare Tranquillitatis, near 7.5°N, 37.5°E; Vent strongly presents features resembling those of the Ina structure. 6.2 km-wide field of view from LROC NAC mosaic M190351657LR, LRO orbit 13098, April 29, 2012; 41.95° angle of incidence, resolution 0.95 meters per pixel from 113.33 km. Full-size versions HERE [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].