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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2020

An Impact Crater Origin for the InSight Landing Site at Homestead Hollow, Mars: Implications for Near Surface Stratigraphy, Surface Processes, and Erosion Rates

The InSight mission to Mars landed within Homestead hollow on an Early Amazonian lavaplain. The hollow is a 27‐m‐diameter, 0.3‐m‐deep quasi‐circular depression that shares morphologic and sedimentologic characteristics to degraded impact craters. Unlike the intercrater plains outside of the hollow, the interior lacks cobbles and is dominated by loose sand, granules, and pebbles. Fresher craters near the landing site exhibit meter‐scale bedforms in their ejecta and on their floors due to sediment trapping.The sedimentology of the interior fill of Homestead hollow suggests similar trapping. The hollow falls along amorphologic continuum that requires low rates of rim degradation and fill. Crater degradation rates (rim erosion plus filling) in the landing site decline nonlinearly through time from 10−2to 10−4m/Myr as craters evolve to a hollow‐like form. Rim erosion rates are lower initially, at 10−3m/Myr, but converge with degradation rates to 10−4m/Myr. This implies that while filling plays an important role soon after crater formation, it is limited in later stages. Crater statistics indicate that the bulk of the fill occurred in the first~50 Myr for Homestead hollow. The estimated maximum age of the hollow is ~400 to 700 Myr. This requires near‐zero fill aggradation and long‐term soil stability for the bulk of the crater's history. Fill stability manifests in Homestead hollow as a ~5‐to 10‐cm‐thick duricrust, formed by exchanges of atmospheric water vapor with soil. The estimated degradation in the hollow requires ~2 to 3 m of sedimentary fill beneath the lander.

Maria Elaine Banks↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Machine Learning Based Crater Detection for Terrain Relative Navigation

As Lunar exploration continues to become more commonplace, reliable methods of precise Terrain Relative Navigation (TRN) are needed. While there are many TRN techniques available, one that has received increased interest in the past few years is that of crater based navigation. Crater based navigation has numerous benefits, including being a human recognizable feature (important for crewed missions), as well as the fact that craters are often possible hazards that need to be detected and avoided. The use of crater based navigation has been limited however. This has been due to the difficulty of running such algorithms on board a spacecraft, as well as the difficulty in procuring large amounts of the required training data. This paper presents a new rendering tool for generating large amounts of high quality training data. It then looks at two recently developed machine learning techniques for crater detection and crater identification in real-time on near-future space hardware.

computer vision↗
NASA NTRS2017

Evolution of Circular Polarization Ratio (CPR) Profiles of Kilometer-scale Craters on the Lunar Maria

When sufficiently large impact craters form on the Moon, rocks and unweathered materials are excavated from beneath the regolith and deposited into their blocky ejecta. This enhances the rockiness and roughness of the proximal ejecta surrounding fresh impact craters. The interior of fresh craters are typically also rough, due to blocks, breccia, and impact melt. Thus, both the interior and proximal ejecta of fresh craters are usually radar bright and have high circular polarization ratios (CPR). Beyond the proximal ejecta, radar-dark halos are observed around some fresh craters, suggesting that distal ejecta is finer-grained than background regolith. The radar signatures of craters fade with time as the regolith grows.

moon↗
NASA NTRS2021

Prolonged Rock Exhumation at the Rims of Kilometer-scale Lunar Craters

Fresh impact ejecta deposits on the lunar surface can be characterized as heterogeneous mixtures of boulders, cobbles, and fine-grained regolith that are deposited on the lunar surface during the impact crater formation process. Over time, the surface boulders associated with ejecta deposits break down into fine-grained regolith due to a combination of later impacts and thermal fatigue. Nonetheless, observations of old (>2.0 Ga) kilometer-scale (0.8–2.0 km) lunar impact craters in high-resolution images reveal >1 m boulders along their rims and in their near-proximal ejecta deposits on the lunar maria. Here, we use a combination of radar and thermal-infrared data from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft to show that the rims of kilometer-sized impact craters exhibit elevated rock abundances for the lifetime of the lunar maria. We interpret these results as indicating that boulders are continually being uncovered at crater rims due to downslope movement of the overlying regolith. Moreover, rocks found at crater rims that have been exhumed from depth in geologically recent times are locally derived and unlikely to have come from other areas of the Moon. Future collection of lunar samples at crater rims will serve to mitigate the potential for sample contamination from distal sources, helping to ensure accurate geologic interpretations from the collected samples.

moon↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Using Controlled Impact Experiments to Understand the Effects of Cohesive Blocks on the Cratering Process

When considering large-scale impact events that occur in the gravity-regime, smallscale target heterogeneities (on order of the projectile diameter) are anticipated to have a minimal effect on the cratering process and are therefore not considered in scaling relations [1-3]. Such heterogeneities and other details of the target's strength and structure, however, become increasingly influential as the magnitude of the impact decreases [4]. At the scale of craters forming mostly in regolith on the Moon (< a few meters), for example, target properties such as cohesive strength, density, porosity, and friction have more leverage than gravity to influence the resultant crater dimensions [5]. Further complications beyond just target properties can manifest in many forms, such as subsurface layers [6]; the presence of random, competent blocks [7]; buried lenses of impact melt; and/or pockets of regolith compacted or indurated to varying degrees by previous impacts. Summing the total effect of target properties and any additional heterogeneities for integration into scaling relations is not straightforward, as each individual parameter will have unequal, and so far, unquantified, effects on the final crater. Even when craters are produced under a best-case scenario of controlled laboratory conditions, understanding the entire relevant parameter space can be a formidable task, and deconvolution of all the contributing factors can be a complex undertaking. To begin the process of quantifying such effects, we are conducting an extensive series of impact experiments to build a framework for the interpretation of craters observed on the characteristically complex surfaces throughout the solar system. Here we present the first, and simplest, configuration to be examined in this multi-year experimental campaign: one in which solitary, cohesive blocks are placed in the path of the projectile’s trajectory at different burial depths in granular, sand targets. Among the variables to be investigated in this configuration are the influence of block size, compressive strength, and burial depth.

impact crater↗
NASA NTRS1972

The process of crater removal in the lunar maria, part P

Near-terminator photography from the Apollo 14 and 15 missions is used as a basis to evaluate the processes by which craters disappear from the lunar surface. From observations and analyses it is concluded that: (1) The erosion of lunar craters in the size range of 10 m to 1 km is effected principally by small impacts producing minute changes in crater form up to the point where the crater is worn to an interior slope of approximately 1 degree. Below that slope, the annihilation process is dominated by the formation of younger overlapping craters. (2) The distribution of shapes of craters in this size range can be explained as resulting from impact generated processes.

Soderblom, L. A.↗
NASA NTRS1973

Geometric interpretation of the ratio of overall diameter to rim crest diameter for lunar and terrestrial craters.

An empirical linear relationship has been established by Pike (1967) between the overall diameter and the rim crest diameter for rimmed, flat-floored as well as bowl-shaped, lunar and terrestrial craters formed by impact and explosion. A similar relationship for experimentally formed fluidization craters has been established by Siegal (1971). This relationship is examined in terms of the geometry of the crater and the slope angles of loose materials. The parameter varies from 1.40 to 1.65 and is found to be dependent on mean interior flat floor radius, exterior and interior rim slope angles, angle of aperture of the crater cone, and the volume fraction of crater void accounted for in the rim. The range of the observed parameter can be understood in terms of simple crater geometry by realistic values of the five parameters.

Siegal, B. S.↗
NASA NTRS1975

Processes of lunar crater degradation - Changes in style with geologic time

Relative age schemes of crater degradation are calibrated to radiometric dates obtained from lunar samples, changes in morphologic features are analyzed, and the style and rate of lunar surface degradation processes are modeled in relation to lunar geologic time. A comparison of radiometric age scales and the relative degradation of morphologic features for craters larger than about 5 km in diameter shows that crater degradation can be divided into two periods: Period I, prior to about 3.9 billion years ago and characterized by a high meteoritic influx rate and the formation of large multiringed basins, and Period II, from about 3.9 billion years ago to the present and characterized by a much lower influx rate and a lack of large multiringed basins. Diagnostic features for determining the relative ages of craters are described, and crater modification processes are considered, including primary impacts, lateral sedimentation, proximity weathering, landslides, and tectonism. It is suggested that the fundamental degradation of early Martian craters may be associated with erosional and depositional processes related to the intense bombardment characteristics of Period I.

Head, J. W.↗
NASA NTRS1974

Impact cratering models and their application to lunar studies - A geologist's view

Impact cratering models are discussed which were derived from: (1) laboratory hypervelocity experiments in cohesive materials; (2) laboratory impact experiments in noncohesive materials such as sand; and (3) terrestrial meteorite impact craters (specifically the Ries Crater, the largest well-preserved terrestrial meteorite crater). Salient features of these three categories of models are compared in order to point out unresolved controversies and inconsistencies. Arguments and evidence are presented to support the conclusions that (1) penetrations of secondary impacts are insignificant and are not likely to stir up much local material, (2) the laboratory hypervelocity experiments are perhaps the best model for lunar glass-lined microcraters, (3) laboratory impact experiments in noncohesive materials such as sand are the best model for impacts in lunar regolith, and (4) the Ries is considered the best model for large lunar impact craters. From analogy with the Ries, it appears that lateral and low-angle transport of ejecta and accelerated lateral growth are important in formation of large impact craters.

Chao, E. C. T.↗
NASA NTRS1975

A size-frequency study of large Martian craters

The log normal frequency distribution law was used to analyze the crater population on the surface of Mars. Resulting data show possible evidence for the size frequency evolution of crater producing bodies. Some regions on Mars display excessive depletion of either large or small craters; the most likely causes of the depletion are considered. Apparently, eolian sedimentation has markedly altered the population of the small craters south of -30 deg latitude. The general effects of crater obliteration in the Southern Hemisphere appear to be confined to diameters of less than 20 km. A strong depletion of large craters in a large region just south of Deuteronilus Mensae, and in a small region centered at 35 deg latitude and 10 deg west longitude, may indicate locations of subsurface ice.

Woronow, A.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Investigation of a new stony meteorite from Mauritania with some additional data on its find site - Aouelloul crater

The Zerga meteorite, a small stony meteorite found at Aouelloul crater, is a fragment of a larger mass with a pre-atmospheric radius between 20 and 125 cm. The meteorite is a typical amphoterite, with monomict brecchia which has undergone at least one recrystallization episode. The terrestrial age of the meteorite is roughly an order of magnitude smaller than the K-Ar gas-retention age (about 3.1 million years) of the glassy impactite found at the crater, which is close to the age of the nearby Tenoumer crater (about 2.5 million years). The similar ages of the two craters, together with their alignment with the Temimichat Ghallaman crater, suggest a simultaneous triple impact following the disruption of a large meteorite moving on a very shallow earth trajectory. The unusually shallow original depths inferred for two of the craters may be explained by low impact angles.

Fudali, R. F.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Comparative studies of Lunar, Martian, and Mercurian craters and plains

Lunar features provide a valuable interpretation data base for comparison with features on other planets which are believed to have been formed by the cratering process. The paper adopts the comparative approach by examining the smooth plains of the moon and Mercury, with special emphasis on crater degradation on the moon, Mercury, and Mars. A possible cause for the observed deficiency of craters with diameters no more than 50 km on certain areas of lunar uplands and on the entire uplands of Mercury and Mars is discussed. It is suggested that pertinent differences can be predicted on the basis of new concepts for production population and of effects of changes in planetary conditions on the secondary cratering process. It is concluded that the deficiency of craters with diameters no more than 50 km on parts of the lunar uplands and on the Mercurian and Martian uplands may be evidence for a deficiency in production of primary craters in this size range. Origin of the late heavy bombardment in the inner solar system is examined.

Oberbeck, V. R.↗
NASA NTRS1976

Photogeology of the multi-ringed crater Haldane in Mare Smythii

Haldane is a 40 km multi-ringed crater that occurs along with similar structures in a belt within the Smythii Basin. It is the best developed structurally of all craters in this belt and displays examples of all materials units of Mare Smythii. In addition to the outer rim, the crater displays a sharp-crested, nearly complete inner ring, and a complex central peak of round hills that are 300-600 m higher than the floor. There are two fracture systems associated with Haldane, one annular and the other radial. The annular fractures seem to control the deposition of mare basalts and dark mantle units in and around the crater. Topographic evidence and flow scarps indicate that the crater was the source of mare basalts and associated dark mantle, rather than its being flooded by such deposits. There are numerous indications that most of the features in and around Haldane are attributable to volcano-tectonic modifications of an original crater-form.

Wolfe, R. W.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Radial variation of lunar crater rim topography

The paper presents results of determinations of variations of rim topography as a function of range from the crater rim for a group of morphologically fresh craters. It is found that the rate at which exterior crater topography converges with the surrounding surface is highly variable among different radial directions at individual craters as well as between different craters, and that at several craters, oblique impact appears to have contributed to azimuthal elevation/range variations.

Settle, M.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Relative crater production rates on planets

The relative numbers of impacts on different planets, estimated from the dynamical histories of planetesimals in specified orbits (Wetherill, 1975), are converted by a described procedure to crater production rates. Conversions are dependent on impact velocity and surface gravity. Crater retention ages can then be derived from the ratio of the crater density to the crater production rate. The data indicate that the terrestrial planets have crater production rates within a factor ten of each other. As an example, for the case of Mars, least-squares fits to crater-count data suggest an average age of 0.3 to 3 billion years for two types of channels. The age of Olympus Mons is discussed, and the effect of Tharsis volcanism on channel formation is considered.

Hartmann, W. K.↗
NASA NTRS1977

A size-frequency study of large Martian craters

Martian craters in the size range 10-250 km follow a log-normal size-frequency distribution law. Analysis techniques based on the log-normal model yield possible evidence for the size-frequency evolution of crater-producing bodies. Some regions on Mars display excessive depletions of either large or small craters; the most likely causes of the depletions are considered. Apparently, eolian sedimentation has markedly altered the population of small craters south of -30 deg latitude. The general effects of crater obliteration in the Southern Hemisphere appear to be confined to diameters of less than 20 km. A strong depletion of large craters in a large region centered at 35 deg latitude and 10 deg W longitude may indicate locations of subsurface ice.

Woronow, A.↗
NASA NTRS1978

Modification of fresh crater landforms - Evidence from the moon and Mercury

The morphology of fresh lunar and Mercurian craters provides insight into processes of crater formation and modification. Measurements determined for Mercurian craters and compared to previously presented lunar data are depth/diameter, central peak and wall-related mass movement frequencies as functions of diameter, crater rim wall width/rim diameter, rim diameter/floor diameter, and central peak height/rim diameter. Two important results are as follows: (1) there is no evidence for direct gravity scaling of crater morphology, although some slight scaling relationship may be indicated, and (2) mass movements are responsible for the change in depth/diameter relationship observed near 2-km depth and 10-km diameter. The latter result is helpful in explaining gravitational and topographic data which suggest low-density regions beneath large fresh craters.

Malin, M. C.↗
NASA NTRS1977

Size-dependence in the shape of fresh impact craters on the moon

The transition from small simple craters to large complex or modified craters is characterized by eleven changes in the shape of fresh lunar craters which occur within a diameter range of 10 to 30 km. In the present paper, seven ratio-level variations - those of rim-crest diameter with depth, rim height, flank width, rimwall slope, floor diameter, circularity, and rim-crest evenness - are defined for fresh-appearing craters from the new Apollo data and are expressed mathematically where practicable. These relations constitute a shape model for interpreting fresh craters on the moon. The size dependent changes reflect the occurrence of central peaks, rimwall terraces, and a flat floor within craters measuring 10 to 20 km in diameter.

Pike, R. J.↗