Moon Science: Tsiolkovskiy Crater's Peak | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
This image is a Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) oblique view looking East at the central peak of Tsiolkovskiy Crater. This large impact crater, with a diameter of 185 km, is located on the farside at 20.38°S latitude and 128.97°E longitude. It is classified as a complex crater because of its terraced walls, scalloped rim, and central peak that rises over 3400 meters (11,150 ft) from the crater floor. Named for Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Tsiolkovskiy Crater lies in the southern hemisphere, to the west of the large crater Gagarin, and northwest of Milne. Just to the south is Waterman, with Neujmin to the south-southwest.
Central peaks of craters form in a matter of seconds from very energetic impact events. The tremendous pressure imparted from the impactor on to the target rock causes it to behave like a plastic for a few brief seconds. An imperfect analogy is a water droplet splashing into water, at first which produces a central jet, the fluid-like behavior of rock after the impact causes it to rebound upwards. Another factor assisting in the uplift of a central peak is the gravitational collapse of the crater walls which pushes material in the center upwards.
The floor of Tsiolkovskiy crater is partially flooded by mare basalt. This is the low reflectance smooth material seen here. The mare basalt on the floor of Tsiolkovskiy crater formed from basaltic lava that erupted after the crater formed and pooled. Mare basalts are predominantly seen on the lunar nearside. They make up the dark plains we are familiar with when we look at the Moon. This uneven distribution of mare basalts is thought to be due to variations between the crustal thickness on the nearside and farside. The nearside crust is thinner, allowing easier access for basalt to flow up to the surface, whereas the thicker crust on the farside makes it so that only large impacts, like the one that formed Tsiolkovskiy crater, have enough energy to excavate deep enough into the crust to allow the release of basaltic lava.
These images were captured by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft (2009-2026).
LRO has made a 3-D map of the Moon's surface at 100-meter resolution and 98.2% coverage (excluding polar areas in deep shadow), including 0.5-meter resolution images of Apollo landing sites.
LRO has been studying the Moon from up close since 2009, making it the longest-lived lunar orbiting mission ever. The orbiter has mapped the Moon’s surface and measured its temperature, composition, and radiation environment in unprecedented detail. Data from LRO enables NASA, and our international and commercial partners, to select locations on the lunar surface where spacecraft and astronauts can safely land. The orbiter is also helping NASA identify areas near the Moon’s South Pole with crucial resources like water and extended sunlight that provides power for equipment and supports exploration activities.
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/lro/
Date: Nov. 19, 2013
#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Moon #Geology #Geoscience #Volcanism #ImpactCraters #TsiolkovskiyCrater #LRO #LunarOrbiter #LROC #NAC #WAC #SpaceRobotics #SpaceTechnology #NASAGoddard #GSFC #ASU #UnitedStates #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education
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