Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age
A new magnetic map of the Moon, based on Lunar Prospector (LP) magnetometer observations, sheds light on the origin of the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA), the largest and oldest of the recognized lunar basins. A set of WNW-trending linear to arcuate magnetic features, evident in both the radial and s...
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ftnasantrs:oai:casi.ntrs.nasa.gov:20140011286 2023-05-15T18:22:08+02:00 Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age Purucker, Michael E. Head, James W., III Wilson, Lionel Unclassified, Unlimited, Publicly available [2012] application/pdf http://hdl.handle.net/2060/20140011286 unknown Document ID: 20140011286 http://hdl.handle.net/2060/20140011286 Copyright, Distribution under U.S. Government purpose rights CASI Lunar and Planetary Science and Exploration GSFC-E-DAA-TN9232 2012 ftnasantrs 2019-07-21T06:13:50Z A new magnetic map of the Moon, based on Lunar Prospector (LP) magnetometer observations, sheds light on the origin of the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA), the largest and oldest of the recognized lunar basins. A set of WNW-trending linear to arcuate magnetic features, evident in both the radial and scalar observations, covers much of a 1000 km wide region centered on the NW portion of SPA. The source bodies are not at the surface because the magnetic features show no first-order correspondence to any surface topographic or structural feature. Patchy mare basalts of possible late Imbrianage are emplaced within SPA and are inferred to have been emplaced through dikes, directly from mantle sources. We infer that the magnetic features represent dike swarms that served as feeders for these mare basalts, as evident from the location of the Thomson/ Mare Ingenii, Van de Graaff, and Leeuwenhoek mare basalts on the two largest magnetic features in the region. Modeling suggests that the dike zone is between 25 and 50 km wide at the surface, and dike magnetization contrasts are in the range of 0.2 A/m. We theorize that the basaltic dikes were emplaced in the lunar crust when a long-lived dynamo was active. Based on pressure, temperature, and stress conditions prevalent in the lunar crust, dikes are expected to be a dominantly subsurface phenomenon, consistent with the observations reported here. Other/Unknown Material South pole NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) Aitken ENVELOPE(-44.516,-44.516,-60.733,-60.733) South Pole |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS) |
op_collection_id |
ftnasantrs |
language |
unknown |
topic |
Lunar and Planetary Science and Exploration |
spellingShingle |
Lunar and Planetary Science and Exploration Purucker, Michael E. Head, James W., III Wilson, Lionel Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age |
topic_facet |
Lunar and Planetary Science and Exploration |
description |
A new magnetic map of the Moon, based on Lunar Prospector (LP) magnetometer observations, sheds light on the origin of the South Pole-Aitken Basin (SPA), the largest and oldest of the recognized lunar basins. A set of WNW-trending linear to arcuate magnetic features, evident in both the radial and scalar observations, covers much of a 1000 km wide region centered on the NW portion of SPA. The source bodies are not at the surface because the magnetic features show no first-order correspondence to any surface topographic or structural feature. Patchy mare basalts of possible late Imbrianage are emplaced within SPA and are inferred to have been emplaced through dikes, directly from mantle sources. We infer that the magnetic features represent dike swarms that served as feeders for these mare basalts, as evident from the location of the Thomson/ Mare Ingenii, Van de Graaff, and Leeuwenhoek mare basalts on the two largest magnetic features in the region. Modeling suggests that the dike zone is between 25 and 50 km wide at the surface, and dike magnetization contrasts are in the range of 0.2 A/m. We theorize that the basaltic dikes were emplaced in the lunar crust when a long-lived dynamo was active. Based on pressure, temperature, and stress conditions prevalent in the lunar crust, dikes are expected to be a dominantly subsurface phenomenon, consistent with the observations reported here. |
format |
Other/Unknown Material |
author |
Purucker, Michael E. Head, James W., III Wilson, Lionel |
author_facet |
Purucker, Michael E. Head, James W., III Wilson, Lionel |
author_sort |
Purucker, Michael E. |
title |
Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age |
title_short |
Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age |
title_full |
Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age |
title_fullStr |
Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age |
title_full_unstemmed |
Magnetic Signature of the Lunar South Pole-Aitken Basin: Character, Origin, and Age |
title_sort |
magnetic signature of the lunar south pole-aitken basin: character, origin, and age |
publishDate |
2012 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/2060/20140011286 |
op_coverage |
Unclassified, Unlimited, Publicly available |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-44.516,-44.516,-60.733,-60.733) |
geographic |
Aitken South Pole |
geographic_facet |
Aitken South Pole |
genre |
South pole |
genre_facet |
South pole |
op_source |
CASI |
op_relation |
Document ID: 20140011286 http://hdl.handle.net/2060/20140011286 |
op_rights |
Copyright, Distribution under U.S. Government purpose rights |
_version_ |
1766201504462536704 |