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Science 16 December 1994:
Vol. 266. no. 5192, pp. 1848 - 1851
DOI: 10.1126/science.266.5192.1848
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Articles

Ancient Multiring Basins on the Moon Revealed by Clementine Laser Altimetry

Paul D. Spudis 1, Jeffrey J. Gillis 1, and Robert A. Reisse 2

1 Lunar and Planetary Institute, 3600 Bay Area Boulevard, Houston, TX 77058, USA.
2 Science Inquiries, 312 Patleigh Road, Catonsville, MD 21228, USA.

Analysis of laser altimetry data from Clementine has confirmed and extended our knowledge of nearly obliterated multiring basins on the moon. These basins were formed during the early bombardment phase of lunar history, have been filled to varying degrees by mare lavas and regional ejecta blankets, and have been degraded by the superposition of large impact craters. The Mendel-Rydberg Basin, a degraded three-ring feature over 600 kilometers in diameter on the lunar western limb, is about 6 kilometers deep from rim to floor, only slightly less deep than the nearby younger and much better preserved Orientale Basin (8 kilometers deep). The South Pole—Aitken Basin, the oldest discernible impact feature on the moon, is revealed as a basin 2500 kilometers in diameter with an average depth of more than 13 kilometers, rim crest to floor. This feature is the largest, deepest impact crater yet discovered in the solar system. Several additional depressions seen in the data may represent previously unmapped ancient impact basins.

Submitted on August 2, 1994
Accepted on October 25, 1994


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
New Views of Lunar Geoscience: An Introduction and Overview.
H. Hiesinger and J. W. Head III (2006)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 60, 1-81
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The Constitution and Structure of the Lunar Interior.
M. A. Wieczorek, B. L. Jolliff, A. Khan, M. E. Pritchard, B. P. Weiss, J. G. Williams, L. L. Hood, K. Righter, C. R. Neal, C. K. Shearer, et al. (2006)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 60, 221-364
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Thermal and Magmatic Evolution of the Moon.
C. K. Shearer, P. C. Hess, M. A. Wieczorek, M. E. Pritchard, E. M. Parmentier, L. E. Borg, J. Longhi, L. T. Elkins-Tanton, C. R. Neal, I. Antonenko, et al. (2006)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 60, 365-518
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Earth-Moon System, Planetary Science, and Lessons Learned.
S. R. Taylor, C. M. Pieters, and G. J. MacPherson (2006)
Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry 60, 657-704
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Improved Gravity Field of the Moon from Lunar Prospector.
A. S. Konopliv, A. B. Binder, L. L. Hood, A. B. Kucinskas, W. L. Sjogren, and J. G. Williams (1998)
Science 281, 1476-1480
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The Clementine Mission to the Moon: Scientific Overview.
S. Nozette, S. Nozette, P. Rustan, L. P. Pleasance, J. F. Kordas, I. T. Lewis, H. S. Park, R. E. Priest, D. M. Horan, P. Regeon, et al. (1994)
Science 266, 1835-1839
   Abstract »    PDF »
The South Pole Region of the Moon as Seen by Clementine.
E. M. Shoemaker, E. M. Shoemaker, M. S. Robinson, and E. M. Eliason (1994)
Science 266, 1851-1854
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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)