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The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) imaging spectrometer for lunar science: Instrument description, calibration, on-orbit measurements, science data calibration and on-orbit validation
Geier, S.; Clark, R.; Besse, S. +51 more
The NASA Discovery Moon Mineralogy Mapper imaging spectrometer was selected to pursue a wide range of science objectives requiring measurement of composition at fine spatial scales over the full lunar surface. To pursue these objectives, a broad spectral range imaging spectrometer with high uniformity and high signal-to-noise ratio capable of meas…
Measuring moonlight: An overview of the spatial properties, lunar coverage, selenolocation, and related Level 1B products of the Moon Mineralogy Mapper
Besse, S.; Isaacson, P.; Pieters, C. M. +7 more
The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3), a high-resolution, high-precision imaging spectrometer, flew on board India's Chandrayaan-1 Mission from October 2008 through August 2009. This paper describes some of the spatial sampling aspects of the instrument, the planned mission, and the mission as flown. We also outline the content and context of…
Lunar mare deposits associated with the Orientale impact basin: New insights into mineralogy, history, mode of emplacement, and relation to Orientale Basin evolution from Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) data from Chandrayaan-1
Head, James W.; Mustard, John; Clark, Roger +6 more
Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) image and spectral reflectance data are combined to analyze mare basalt units in and adjacent to the Orientale multiring impact basin. Models are assessed for the relationships between basin formation and mare basalt emplacement. Mare basalt emplacement on the western nearside limb began prior to the Oriental…
The mineralogy of late stage lunar volcanism as observed by the Moon Mineralogy Mapper on Chandrayaan-1
Head, J. W.; Besse, S.; Boardman, J. +11 more
The last major phases of lunar volcanism produced spectrally unique high-titanium basalts on the western nearside of the Moon. The Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) on Chandrayaan-1 has provided detailed measurements of these basalts at spatial and spectral resolutions necessary for mineralogical interpretation and mapping of distinct composi…
Modeling polarimetric radar scattering from the lunar surface: Study on the effect of physical properties of the regolith layer
Heggy, Essam; Wieczorek, Mark A.; Fa, Wenzhe
A theoretical model for radar scattering from the lunar regolith using the vector radiative transfer theory for random media has been developed in order to aid in the interpretation of Mini-SAR data from the Chandrayaan-1 and Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter missions. The lunar regolith is represented as a homogeneous fine-grained layer with rough upp…
Remote compositional analysis of lunar olivine-rich lithologies with Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) spectra
Mustard, John F.; Clark, Roger N.; Head, James W. +10 more
A systematic approach for deconvolving remotely sensed lunar olivine-rich visible to near-infrared (VNIR) reflectance spectra with the Modified Gaussian Model (MGM) is evaluated with Chandrayaan-1 Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) spectra. Whereas earlier studies of laboratory reflectance spectra focused only on complications due to chromite …
Unique spinel-rich lithology in lunar meteorite ALHA 81005: Origin and possible connection to M3 observations of the farside highlands
Treiman, Allan H.; Gross, Juliane
A new lunar rock type, rich in (Mg, Fe)Al spinel and lacking abundant olivine and pyroxene, was recently detected by near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy by the M3 instrument on the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft. No such material has been described from lunar rocks, either returned samples or meteorites. Here we describe a fragment of rock…
The nature of lunar volatiles as revealed by Mini-RF observations of the LCROSS impact site
Patterson, G. W.; Neish, C. D.; Bussey, D. B. J. +4 more
On 9 October 2009 the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) impacted Cabeus crater, located near the south pole of the Moon. Prior to that impact, the Mini-RF instruments on ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 and NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) obtained S band (12.6 cm) synthetic aperture radar images of the impact site at 150 and 30…
Modeling radar scattering from icy lunar regoliths at 13 cm and 4 cm wavelengths
Heggy, Essam; Thompson, Thomas W.; Ustinov, Eugene A.
Two orbital synthetic aperture radars (SARs), the Chandrayaan-1 Mini-SAR (13 cm wavelength) and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Mini-RF (13 and 4.2 cm wavelengths), have been imaging the lunar surface searching for ice deposits in the polar permanently shadowed areas. To understand the radar signatures of lunar polar ices, an empirical two-…
Goldschmidt crater and the Moon's north polar region: Results from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3)
Clark, R. N.; Head, J. W.; McCord, T. B. +10 more
Soils within the impact crater Goldschmidt have been identified as spectrally distinct from the local highland material. High spatial and spectral resolution data from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) on the Chandrayaan-1 orbiter are used to examine the character of Goldschmidt crater in detail. Spectral parameters applied to a north pol…