Featured Images

Fractures and Boulders

Fractured impact melt left the interior of De Forest crater lined with boulders. LROC NAC M125650563L, image width is 720 m, North is up [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University]. 

Published on 05 Aug 2014

A Tortuous Path in Posidonius

This may look like a work of abstract art, but in reality, it's for science! This colorful image is an LROC slope map of the northwestern portion of the floor of Posidonius crater. Warmer colors indicate steeper slopes, whereas cooler...

Published on 31 Jul 2014

Making a Splash at King Crater

Impact melt ponds adorn the lumpy terraces of King crater. If you look carefully, you can see small fractures in some of the these ponds. LROC NAC mosaic (M1159315479L/R), image width is approximately 8 km [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...

Published on 29 Jul 2014

Banded Slump in Berzelius W

A complex interplay of slumping and slides in the northwest wall of Berzelius W result in banding patterns; downslope is toward the bottom right. LROC NAC M174921824R; image width 600 m [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 24 Jul 2014

Small Step or Giant Leap?

A house-sized boulder (more than 30 m in diameter) left a clear impression (arrow) in the lunar surface. This boulder was thrown a relatively short distance (500 m) to the east of a young 1.6-km crater (rim crest to the left); LROC NAC...

Published on 21 Jul 2014

Dorsum Nicol

This tectonic feature was formed as stresses built up in the lunar crust until the rock gave way. The energy released was immense, and the displaced rock is the north-south trending wrinkle ridge that we see today. This is LROC NAC...

Published on 17 Jul 2014

Birt E

Birt E crater is thought to be the source region for lava that carved out Rima Birt, a rille in Mare Nubium. This mare is older than 3.4 billion years, and so is this vent! LROC NAC M1144849711LR with the a color DTM overlaid; North is...

Published on 15 Jul 2014

Donut Holes

LROC NAC image M180430508R showing central mounds, ~1 km diameter each, on the floor of Harriot B crater. Image width is ~3 km and North points up [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 10 Jul 2014

A Rille to Rover Over

LROC NAC image M1145219838 of a rille found on the Southwestern edge of Oceanus Procellarum. This rille most likely formed from the stress added to the crust as the mare deposits were emplaced and cooled [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...

Published on 08 Jul 2014

Sun Angles

Unnamed fresh crater ejecta at the same location in two distinct incidence angles (left: 68°, right: 8°). LROC NAC M146255155R (left) and M187520776L (right); the width of each image is 600 m; north is up [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...

Published on 03 Jul 2014

Five Years Later: Revisiting an Old Friend

A portion of LROC's first image (M101013931), acquired five years ago today. This region of the rim of Shackleton crater near the lunar South Pole is illuminated over 70% of the time, while the floor of the crater is permanently...

Published on 03 Jul 2014

A Fresh Crater in Campbell

An impactor collided with the surface just off the edge of a mare deposit in the floor of the crater Campbell in this LROC NAC mosaic (M1156751914). The crater is ~4 km in diameter [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 26 Jun 2014

Breaking Down Walls

Gravity is winning as boulders tumble down from the rim of Moore F (~24 km in diameter) in this LROC NAC mosaic (M1156517189) [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 24 Jun 2014

The Original Interplanetary Mountaineers

Traverse plots of the first two Apollo 15 EVAs, on which astronauts Scott and Irwin ventured to the lower slopes of Mons Hadley Delta (center left); numbers indicate elevations above the landing site (LM) (oblique LROC NAC M1123519889;...

Published on 20 Jun 2014

Soaring Over Mighty Mt. Hadley

An oblique view, looking east-to-west over the Apennine Mountains towards Hadley Rille (upper left) (LROC NAC M1123519889, north is to the right). A long shadow is cast by mighty Mt. Hadley (center right). Nestled between the Apennines...

Published on 18 Jun 2014

Old and New

Degraded crater wall of Vavilov D. Image center is 1.14°N, 221.536°E, image width is 1440 m, incidence angle is 61°, down slope is to the lower right, M1128031686L  [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University]. 

Published on 12 Jun 2014

Onset Diameter

Multiple small young craters on a fresh ejecta sheet. LROC NAC M1132582647R. Image center is 2.971°S, 246.936°E; image width is 1.2 km; incidence angle is 9° [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University]. 

Published on 10 Jun 2014

Tender Tendrils

Beautiful granular flows on the wall of Hipparchus G crater brought fresh debris from the rim down the walls, downslope is to the left. Image width is ~1 km, and North is up; LROC NAC image M183474839L [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 03 Jun 2014

Eroding Crater Walls

High reflectance material poured down the walls toward the floor of Maskelyne B crater indicating interbedding of high reflectance and low reflectance layers in the walls. Image width is 2800 m and vertical relief is 1300 m (4250 feet)....

Published on 30 May 2014

Trundling Across the Moon

Tracks made by Lunokhod 2 as it tested for variations in local magnetic properties while traversing around a small crater (25.764°N, 30.474°E), M122007650R, image width 470 m [NASA/ GSFC/ Arizona State University].

Published on 23 May 2014