Global Silicate Mineralogy of the Moon from the Diviner Lunar Radiometer

Greenhagen, B. T.; Lucey, P. G.; Wyatt, M. B.; Glotch, T. D.; Allen, Carlton C.; Arnold, Jessica A.; Bandfield, J. L.; Bowles, Neil E.; Hanna, K. L. Donaldson; Hayne, P. O.; Song, Eakhwan; Thomas, Ian; Paige, D. A.

doi:10.1126/science.1192196

Cited by 171 publications

(177 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…The off-swirl locations were defined to be well outside the visible light albedo boundaries of the swirls identified in Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera wide angle camera or Clementine data. The average off-swirl CF values at Reiner Gamma (8.31 mm) and Van de Graaff (8.20 mm) are close to the previously determined global average mare and highland CF values 17 . The average on-swirl values for Reiner Gamma and Van de Graaff are shifted to shorter wavelengths by 0.08 and 0.09 mm, respectively.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 60%

“…CF values were modelled following the methods of Greenhagen et al 17 In brief, the shapes of the CFs for the regolith surfaces of airless bodies can be approximated as parabolas. Each three-point Diviner spectrum is fit as a parabola by solving the following system of three equations to find the wavelength of the parabola maximum, l Max :…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This result, in addition to the relative lack of thermophysical anomalies at the swirl sites, strongly supports the solar wind standoff model and disqualifies the micrometeoroid/ comet swarm and dust levitation models for swirl formation. Diviner data can be used to determine the composition and degree of space weathering of the lunar surface 17,19,20 and to determine thermophysical properties using daytime and night-time thermal infrared measurements 21,22 . The ability to characterize both the compositional and thermophysical properties of the lunar regolith make Diviner well suited to examine the swirls and differentiate between the three proposed formation mechanisms.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Diviner has three narrow band infrared channels near 8 mm, from which the silicate Christiansen Feature (CF) can be calculated 17 . The position of the CF is related to the degree of mineral silicate polymerization and provides an indicator of composition 18 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Formation of lunar swirls by magnetic field standoff of the solar wind

et al. 2015

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Lunar swirls are high-albedo markings on the Moon that occur in both mare and highland terrains; their origin remains a point of contention. Here, we use data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Diviner Lunar Radiometer to support the hypothesis that the swirls are formed as a result of deflection of the solar wind by local magnetic fields. Thermal infrared data from this instrument display an anomaly in the position of the silicate Christiansen Feature consistent with reduced space weathering. These data also show that swirl regions are not thermophysically anomalous, which strongly constrains their formation mechanism. The results of this study indicate that either solar wind sputtering and implantation are more important than micrometeoroid bombardment in the space-weathering process, or that micrometeoroid bombardment is a necessary but not sufficient process in space weathering, which occurs on airless bodies throughout the solar system.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 60%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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Formation of lunar swirls by magnetic field standoff of the solar wind

et al. 2015

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“…Christensen et al, 2004) and on airless bodies by the Lunar Diviner Radiometer experiment on NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance orbiter (e.g. Greenhagen et al, 2010).…”

Section: Scientific Strategymentioning

confidence: 99%

The proposed Caroline ESA M3 mission to a Main Belt Comet

Jones

Agarwal

Bowles

et al. 2018

Advances in Space Research

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We describe Caroline, a mission proposal submitted to the European Space Agency in 2010 in response to the Cosmic Visions M3 call for medium-sized missions. Caroline would have travelled to a Main Belt Comet (MBC), characterizing the object during a flyby, and capturing dust from its tenuous coma for return to Earth. MBCs are suspected to be transition objects straddling the traditional boundary between volatile-poor rocky asteroids and volatile-rich comets. The weak cometary activity exhibited by these objects indicates the presence of water ice, and may represent the primary type of object that delivered water to the early Earth. The Caroline mission would have employed aerogel as a medium for the capture of dust grains, as successfully used by the NASA Stardust mission to Comet 81P/ Wild 2. We describe the proposed mission design, primary elements of the spacecraft, and provide an overview of the science instruments and their measurement goals. Caroline was ultimately not selected by the European Space Agency during the M3 call; we briefly reflect on the pros and cons of the mission as proposed, and how current and future mission MBC mission proposals such as Castalia could best be approached.

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Global assessment of pure crystalline plagioclase across the Moon and implications for the evolution of the primary crust

Hanna

Cheek

Pieters

et al. 2014

J. Geophys. Res. Planets

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Recent advancements in visible to near infrared orbital measurements of the lunar surface have allowed the character and extent of the primary anorthositic crust to be studied at unprecedented spatial and spectral resolutions. Here we assess the lunar primary anorthositic crust in global context using a spectral parameter tool for Moon Mineralogy Mapper data to identify and map Fe-bearing crystalline plagioclase based on its diagnostic 1.25 μm absorption band. This allows plagioclase-dominated rocks, specifically anorthosites, to be unambiguously identified as well as distinguished from lithologies with minor to trace amounts of mafic minerals. Low spatial resolution global mosaics and high spatial resolution individual data strips covering more than 650 targeted craters were analyzed to identify and map the mineralogy of spectrally pure regions as small as~400 m in size. Spectrally, pure plagioclase is identified in approximately 450 targets located across the lunar surface. Diviner thermal infrared (TIR) data are analyzed for 37 of these nearly monomineralic regions in order to understand the compositional variability of plagioclase (An#) in these areas. The average An# for each spectrally pure region is estimated using new laboratory measurements of a well-characterized anorthite (An 96 ) sample. Diviner TIR results suggest that the plagioclase composition across the lunar highlands is relatively uniform, high in calcium content, and consistent with plagioclase compositions found in the ferroan anorthosites (An 94-98 ). Our results confirm that spectrally pure anorthosite is widely distributed across the lunar surface, and most exposures of the ancient anorthositic crust are concentrated in regions of thicker crust surrounding impact basins on the lunar nearside and farside. In addition, the scale of the impact basins and the global nature and distribution of pure plagioclase requires a coherent zone of anorthosite of similar composition in the lunar crust supporting its formation from a single differentiation event like a magma ocean. Our identifications of pure anorthosite combined with the GRAIL crustal thickness model suggest that pure anorthosite is currently observed at a range of crustal thickness values between 9 and 63 km and that the primary anorthositic crust must have been at least 30 km thick.

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Global Silicate Mineralogy of the Moon from the Diviner Lunar Radiometer

Cited by 171 publications

References 29 publications

Formation of lunar swirls by magnetic field standoff of the solar wind

Formation of lunar swirls by magnetic field standoff of the solar wind

The proposed Caroline ESA M3 mission to a Main Belt Comet

Global assessment of pure crystalline plagioclase across the Moon and implications for the evolution of the primary crust

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