Planets and Moons ID: 3874

Tour of the Moon

Visualizations by Ernie Wright Released on October 27, 2011

There is a newer version of this story located here: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4619

Using elevation and image data returned by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), this animation takes the viewer on a virtual tour of the Moon. The tour visits a number of interesting sites chosen to illustrate a wide variety of lunar terrain features. Some are on the near side and are familiar to both professional and amateur observers on Earth, while others can only be seen clearly from space. Some are large and old (Orientale, South Pole-Aitken), others are smaller and younger (Tycho, Aristarchus). Constantly shadowed areas near the poles are hard to photograph but easier to measure with altimetry, while several of the Apollo landing sites, all relatively near the equator, have been imaged at resolutions as high as 25 centimeters (10 inches) per pixel.

The shape of the terrain in this animation is based primarily on data from LRO's laser altimeter (LOLA), supplemented by stereo image data from its wide angle camera (LROC WAC) and from Japan's Kaguya mission. The global surface color is from Clementine.

This version includes the data overlays (color coded elevation and latitude/longitude polar grid), but omits the feature name and scale.

Shackleton Crater. The South Pole lies just inside this crater. Direct sunlight never reaches the crater floor. The faint crosshatch pattern is a sensor artifact.

The South Pole-Aitken Basin on the lunar far side is one of the largest and oldest impact features in the solar system. It's easily seen in the elevation data. The low center is dark blue and purple. Mountains on its edge, remnants of outer rings, are red and yellow.

Taurus-Littrow Valley (large dark area, lower center), north up. The view is centered on the Apollo 17 landing site. Uses a 10-meter stereoscopic elevation map from JAXA's Kaguya spacecraft.

Apollo 17 site as photographed by the LRO narrow angle camera. Visible are the lander, rover, and trails left by both the rover tires and the astronauts.