Featured Images

Mare Moscoviense Constellation Site

A very subtle mare-highlands boundary in Mare Moscoviense on the lunar farside, near the center of the Constellation Program region of interest. The generalized geologic contact between the mare and the highlands has been highlighted...

Published on 04 Jan 2010

Peary Crater: Greetings from the North Pole of the Moon

A junction between the rims of three craters on the floor of Peary crater near the lunar north pole is evident in this NAC image (M101955359L). Note the mottled texture of the regolith. Peary is a key exploration site for future...

Published on 24 Dec 2009

Impact Melt Flows on Giordano Bruno

Frozen impact melt flows on the ejecta blanket of the young impact crater Giordano Bruno (22 km diameter). The image is about 600 m across and the flows are about 50-100 m wide (NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University).

Published on 15 Dec 2009

High Noon at Tranquility Base

As the Apollo 11 Lunar Module (LM) neared the surface, Neil Armstrong could see the landing area was right on the rough bouldery ejecta of West crater. He had to change the flight plan and fly the LM westward to find a safe landing...

Published on 09 Nov 2009

Apollo 12 Second Look: Midday on the Ocean of Storms

New view of the Apollo 12 landing site in Oceanus Procellarum imaged from the LRO mapping orbit. Small black arrows show locations where astronaut footpaths can be clearly discerned. Image width is 490 meters [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...

Published on 04 Nov 2009

Exploring the Apollo 17 Site

The Apollo 17 Lunar Module Challenger descent stage comes into focus from the new lower 50-km mapping orbit, image width is 102 meters [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 28 Oct 2009

Bouncing, Bounding Boulders!

Many boulder trails are found on the lunar crater walls and basin massifs. Some of the trails are smooth and nearly straight while others are curvy or gouge into the surface. In many cases by following a boulder's trail you are led back...

Published on 15 Oct 2009

Asymmetric Ejecta

Distinctive asymmetrical ejecta surrounding a 140 meter diameter crater in the lunar highlands. Crater is located on the northeastern rim of the eroded (pre-Nectarian) crater Hommel at -52.9° N and 34.6° E. Image width is 600 meters and...

Published on 13 Oct 2009

Apollo 14 S-IVB Impact Crater

Crater (center of image) formed by impact of the Apollo 14 Saturn IVB booster. The booster was intentionally impacted into the lunar surface on February 4, 1971 to serve as an energy source to probe the interior structure of the Moon...

Published on 08 Oct 2009

A Very Sinuous Rille

Two oxbow bends along the length of a sinuous rille located on a mare-filled crater floor. The tight twists and turns of the rille suggest that a very turbulent lava flow formed this rille. Subarea of uncalibrated LROC NAC frame...

Published on 07 Oct 2009

Aratus CA

Subset of uncalibrated LROC NAC frame M104447576R showing Vallis Lorca, one of four lobes that make up Aratus CA in western Mare Serenitatis near the Montes Apennius. The Sun is shining from the lower left, image width is 1924 meters...

Published on 02 Oct 2009

Surveyor 1 - America’s first soft lunar landing

Surveyor 1 spacecraft sitting silently on Oceanus Procellarum, the first US spacecraft to land on another planet (June 2, 1966). The image was taken in the lunar afternoon such that the sun in low on the western horizon and the 3.3...

Published on 30 Sep 2009

Apollo 11: Second look

LROC's second look at the Apollo 11 Landing Site [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 29 Sep 2009

Timocharis Crater

The ejecta blanket and rim of Timocharis crater in southeastern Mare Imbrium. Image width is 7.2 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 09 Sep 2009

First Look: Apollo 12 and Surveyor 3

First look at Apollo 12 landing site, the Lunar Module descent stage, Experiment package (ALSEP) and Surveyor 3 spacecraft are all visible along with astronaut tracks (unmarked arrows). Image is 824 meters wide, north up...

Published on 03 Sep 2009

Uplift, Boulders of Tsiolkovskiy

Boulders perched on the summit of the central peak of Tsiolkovskiy crater [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 01 Sep 2009

First LROC Stereo Results

Synthetic perspective view looking south from the Apollo 16 landing area, topography is rendered naturally (no vertical exaggeration) [NASA/GSFC/Ohio State University].

Published on 25 Aug 2009

Necho Crater

Cracks form in the impact melt sheet on the floor of Necho Crater. Image width is 1.04 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 21 Aug 2009

Trail of Discovery at Fra Mauro

Uncalibrated LROC NAC image of the Apollo 14 landing site and nearby Cone crater. The trail followed by the astronauts can clearly be discerned. Image width is 1.6 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 19 Aug 2009

Rille within a rille!

Sinuous rille winding its way across a much larger rille in the heart of the Aristarchus Plateau, image width 1.76 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 18 Aug 2009