Moon Science: Sunrise over a 10-km crater | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Moon Science: Sunrise over a 10-km crater  | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Early morning Sun illuminates the steep western wall of an unnamed 10-kilometer diameter crater. North is to the right, image 3.5 kilometers across in the center.

Deep shadows pattern the ground around Bailly O crater and the fresh, not-yet-named crater in the foreground (10-kilometer diameter, 2200 meters deep, 70.00°S, 302.46°E). Very few impact craters superpose this crater, its walls are often at the angle-of-repose (36°), and small-scale features are crisp and sharp, indicating a very young age, possibly as young as Giordano Bruno, perhaps two million years or less. The view is looking east-to-west, acquired 2023-08-30, incidence angle 82°, slew angle 67°, phase angle 74°, slew angle 67°, spacecraft altitude 100 kilometers, image is 12 kilometers wide in the center, M1448073607LR

Enjoy these dramatic sunrise views of a possibly two-million-year-old unnamed crater 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) in diameter. This year, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) celebrates its 16th anniversary orbiting the Moon (2009-2026). This mission has given scientists the largest volume of data ever collected by a planetary science mission at NASA. Considering that success and the continuing functionality of the spacecraft and its instruments, NASA awarded the mission an extended mission phase to continue operations. LRO continues to be one of NASA's most valuable tools for advancing lunar science.

Learn more about NASA's LRO:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/lro/

Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Intuitive Machines
Release Date: October 22, 2024

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