The Effects of Terrain Properties Upon the Small Crater Population Distribution at Giordano Bruno: Implications for Lunar Chronology.

ABSTRACT: The distribution of impact craters on the ejecta of Giordano Bruno, a recent (<10 Ma) 22-km diameter crater within the lunar highlands, exhibits substantial variations. We surveyed craters D ≥ 10 m across a 1,323 km² area of Giordano Bruno's ejecta and compared the distribution of craters with variations in thermophysical properties derived from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Diviner instrument. We used Diviner-derived rock abundance and nighttime regolith temperatures along with thermal model-predicted surface temperatures for a diversity of terrains to identify and isolate areas of the ejecta based on thermophysical properties such as bulk density and thermal conductivity. We found that thermophysical properties of the ejecta vary considerably both laterally and verti

SUBMITTER: Williams JP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9287037 | biostudies-literature | 2022 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature