The Clementine Mission to the Moon: Scientific Overview

Nozette, S.; Rustan, P. L.; Pleasance, Lyn D.; Horan, D. M.; Regeon, P.A.; Shoemaker, E. M.; Spudis, P. D.; Acton, C. H.; Baker, David; Blamont, J. É.; Buratti, B. J.; Corson, M. P.; Davies, Merton E.; Duxbury, T. C.; Eliason, E. M.; Jakosky, B. M.; Kordas, Joseph F.; Lewis, Isabella T.; Lichtenberg, Christopher L.; Lucey, P. G.; Malaret, E.; Massie, Mark A.; Resnick, J.; Rollins, Chris; Park, H. S.; McEwen, A. S.; Priest, Robert E.; Pieters, C. M.; Reisse, Robert A.; Robinson, M. S.; Simpson, R. A.; Smith, David E.; Sorenson, T. C.; Breugge, R. W. Vorder; Zuber, M. T.

doi:10.1126/science.266.5192.1835

Cited by 374 publications

(175 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Since the entire surface of the Moon was simultaneously imaged in six spectral band passes by the UVVIS camera [Nozette et al, 1994], photoclinometric investigations require a Minneart function for at least one of these filters. We worked with images taken with the 0.750-1am UVVIS band-pass filter since they were some of the first fully calibrated data to be made available, an identical 0.750-lain filter flew on the HiRes camera, and 0.750-!,tm images are the best for investigating geologic features on the Moon.…”

Section: Minneart Functionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulated degradation of lunar impact craters and a new method for age dating farside mare deposits

Craddock¹,

Howard²

2000

J. Geophys. Res.

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Abstract. With the advent of Clementine data it is now possible to determine the lithology and extent of geologic materials on the Moon, particularly the farside mare deposits. However, traditional crater counting techniques do not provide reliable age estimates of these materials owing to their small surface areas. To support such studies, we present a model for estimating their age by analyzing the morphometry of degraded craters 1-3 km in diameter. A photoclinometric model was adapted for use with monoscopic 0.750-gm ultraviolet-visible and high-resolution images where we extracted the topography of fresh craters. A two-dimensional computer model simulating linear diffusional creep was applied to fresh craters at a variety of diameters. The resulting profiles were then compared to photoclinometric profiles of degraded craters of known ages for calibration. Application of the resulting model to degraded craters in the mare deposit of the central Apollo basin (-36.5 ø latitude, 208.0 ø longitude) indicates that this material was emplaced during the early Imbrian period (-3.85 Ga). By calculating the amount of material eroded from each of the degraded craters observed in this unit, the average erosion rate is estimated to be 2.0+_0.1 x 10 -7 mm/yr on the Moon since the Imbrian. The estimated amount of material eroded during any given period suggests that the erosion rate has decreased with time, implying that the tlux of larger impactors has as well.

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Section: Minneart Functionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Simulated degradation of lunar impact craters and a new method for age dating farside mare deposits

Craddock¹,

Howard²

2000

J. Geophys. Res.

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“…The LIDAR instrument has provided a wealth of new topographic data for the Moon between 75"s and 75"N latitude (see Nozette et al, 1994). Clementine's polar orbit provided altimetry data along north-south orbital tracks (roughly along lines of longitude) spaced by approximately 2.5" at the equator (Zuber et al, 1994; also see Spudis et al, 1994).…”

Section: Topographymentioning

confidence: 99%

The topography and gravity of Mare Serenitatis: implications for subsidence of the mare surface

Watters

Konopliv

2001

Planetary and Space Science

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“…The data used in this study were obtained by the Clementine UV-VIS multispectral camera [Nozette et al, 1994], which has five filters in the wavelength range from 0.415 to 1.0 gm. The spatial resolution of Clementine UV-VIS data varies across the Moon and is 120 m/pixel in the Grimaldi region, 156 m/pixel in the Tsiolkovsky crater, 170 m/pixel in Orientale basin and 125 m/pixel at the Fecunditatis contact.…”

Section: Data Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compositional gradients across mare‐highland contacts: Importance and geological implication of lateral transport

Li¹,

Mustard²

2000

J. Geophys. Res.

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Observations of mixing across mare-highland contacts using high-resolution Clementine data allow a new assessment of the relative importance of vertical versus lateral mass transport on the Moon at least at mare-highland contact. We analyze mare-highland contacts in the Grimaldi, Orientale, and Fecunditatis basins and Tsiolkovsky crater through image-based nonlinear spectral mixture modeling of Clementine ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) light spectrometer multispectral data. The mare in these regions differ in ages, but they are characterized by having simple geological contacts. The symmetric distribution of mare and highland soil constituents across their geological contact indicates that lateral transport is more efficient than deep vertical transport during the formation of the observed mixing zones. Observations across the lunar limb with the Clementine UV-VIS filters show that there is a stray light component of scattered light across high-contrast albedo boundaries. However, the magnitude and spatial properties of scattered light do not significantly affect the nature of compositional boundaries determined here. Since repetitive meteorite bombardment governs lateral transport across the geological contacts and is a random process, a stochastic model is developed to describe this lateral transport. Analysis of the power decay law for crater ejecta thickness indicates that the high-velocity ejecta travels long distances and follows a -3 power decay law. This results in an infinite variance, which requires an anomalous diffusion model since a classical diffusion model would be invalid. Mathematical modeling supports this result where it is shown that classical diffusion produces a relatively poor fit to profiles of material abundance, while the anomalous diffusion model fits the profiles adequately. These results indicate that high-velocity ejecta dominates the formation of the observed compositional gradients, while the ejecta near the crater rim is relatively less important. On the basis of these ejecta distributions and the assumption of random impact cratering, we derive a relationship that can be used as an index for relative age dating of geological contacts as well as for investigating cratering rates.

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The Clementine Mission to the Moon: Scientific Overview

Cited by 374 publications

References 18 publications

Simulated degradation of lunar impact craters and a new method for age dating farside mare deposits

Simulated degradation of lunar impact craters and a new method for age dating farside mare deposits

The topography and gravity of Mare Serenitatis: implications for subsidence of the mare surface

Compositional gradients across mare‐highland contacts: Importance and geological implication of lateral transport

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