Depth to diameter analysis on small simple craters at the lunar south pole - possible implications for ice harboring
- In this paper, we present a study comparing the depth to diameter (d/D) ratio of small simple craters (200-1000 m) of an area between -88.5 degrees to -90 degrees latitude at the lunar south pole containing Permanent Shadowed Regions (PSRs) versus craters without PSRs. As PSRs can reach temperatures of 110 K and are capable of harboring volatiles, especially water ice, we analyzed the relationship of depth versus diameter ratios and its possible implications for harboring water ice. Variations in the d/D ratios can also be caused by other processes such as degradation, isostatic adjustment, or differences in surface properties. The conducted d/D ratio analysis suggests that a differentiation between craters containing PSRs versus craters without PSRs occurs. Thus, a possible direct relation between d/D ratio, PSRs, and water ice harboring might exist. Our results suggest that differences in the target's surface properties may explain the obtained results. The resulting d/D ratios of craters with PSRs can help to select target areasIn this paper, we present a study comparing the depth to diameter (d/D) ratio of small simple craters (200-1000 m) of an area between -88.5 degrees to -90 degrees latitude at the lunar south pole containing Permanent Shadowed Regions (PSRs) versus craters without PSRs. As PSRs can reach temperatures of 110 K and are capable of harboring volatiles, especially water ice, we analyzed the relationship of depth versus diameter ratios and its possible implications for harboring water ice. Variations in the d/D ratios can also be caused by other processes such as degradation, isostatic adjustment, or differences in surface properties. The conducted d/D ratio analysis suggests that a differentiation between craters containing PSRs versus craters without PSRs occurs. Thus, a possible direct relation between d/D ratio, PSRs, and water ice harboring might exist. Our results suggest that differences in the target's surface properties may explain the obtained results. The resulting d/D ratios of craters with PSRs can help to select target areas for future In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) missions.…
| Author details: | Ramiro Marco FigueraORCiD, Christian RiedelORCiDGND, Angelo Pio RossiORCiDGND, Vikram UnnithanORCiD |
|---|---|
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14030450 |
| ISSN: | 2072-4292 |
| Title of parent work (English): | Remote sensing |
| Publisher: | MDPI |
| Place of publishing: | Basel |
| Publication type: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Date of first publication: | 2022/01/18 |
| Publication year: | 2022 |
| Release date: | 2024/04/05 |
| Tag: | craters; ice harboring; lunar exploration |
| Volume: | 14 |
| Issue: | 3 |
| Article number: | 450 |
| Number of pages: | 13 |
| Funding institution: | European Union [654367] |
| Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Informatik und Computational Science |
| DDC classification: | 5 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik / 52 Astronomie / 520 Astronomie und zugeordnete Wissenschaften |
| 5 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik / 53 Physik / 530 Physik | |
| Peer review: | Referiert |
| Publishing method: | Open Access / Gold Open-Access |
| DOAJ gelistet | |
| License (German): |  CC-BY - Namensnennung 4.0 International |
