July 14, 2011

Van Gogh Moon

image by " rel="nofollow NASA LOLA (Goddard Space Flight Center and MIT)

Is this a close up of " rel="nofollow Starry Night? Or perhaps a map of the " rel="nofollow local bubble? Double no. It is the latest release from the LRO LOLA team depicting slopes near the lunar south pole. The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter makes ultra-precise distance measurements from the LRO spacecraft to small spots on the lunar surface. By differencing adjacent spots only 25 m apart the LOLA team derived this slope map, with red and white representing steep slopes greater than 25°, and dark blues being less than 5°. The steep inner rims of craters stand out like red Life-Savers, and one unidentified very steep-walled crater is at upper right. Most craters that are interesting are relatively fresh, and hence their walls are steep and will be dangerous to traverse.

" rel="nofollow Chuck Wood
Thanks to Patricio Leon for suggesting this image and title!

Related Links
Rükl plate 73

---