Major Compositional Units of the Moon: Lunar Prospector Thermal and Fast Neutrons

Global maps of thermal and fast neutron fluxes from the moon suggest three end-member compositional units. A high thermal and low fast neutron flux unit correlates with the lunar highlands and is consistent with feldspathic rocks. The South Pole–Aitken basin and a strip that surrounds the nearside m...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science
Main Authors: Feldman, W. C., Barraclough, B. L., Maurice, S., Elphic, R. C., Lawrence, D. J., Thomsen, D. R., Binder, A. B.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1998
Subjects:
Aitken
South Pole
South pole
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.281.5382.1489
https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.281.5382.1489
Description
Summary:Global maps of thermal and fast neutron fluxes from the moon suggest three end-member compositional units. A high thermal and low fast neutron flux unit correlates with the lunar highlands and is consistent with feldspathic rocks. The South Pole–Aitken basin and a strip that surrounds the nearside maria have intermediate thermal and fast neutron flux levels, consistent with more mafic rocks. There appears to be a smooth transition between the most mafic and feldspathic compositions, which correspond to low and high surface altitudes, respectively. The maria show low thermal and high fast neutron fluxes, consistent with basaltic rocks.

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