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Bickel VT, Aaron J, Manconi A, Loew S, Mall U. Impacts drive lunar rockfalls over billions of years. Nat Commun 2020; 11:2862. [PMID: 32513934 PMCID: PMC7280507 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-16653-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Past exploration missions have revealed that the lunar topography is eroded through mass wasting processes such as rockfalls and other types of landslides, similar to Earth. We have analyzed an archive of more than 2 million high-resolution images using an AI and big data-driven approach and created the first global map of 136.610 lunar rockfall events. Using this map, we show that mass wasting is primarily driven by impacts and impact-induced fracture networks. We further identify a large number of currently unknown rockfall clusters, potentially revealing regions of recent seismic activity. Our observations show that the oldest, pre-Nectarian topography still hosts rockfalls, indicating that its erosion has been active throughout the late Copernican age and likely continues today. Our findings have important implications for the estimation of the Moon's erosional state and other airless bodies as well as for the understanding of the topographic evolution of planetary surfaces in general.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentin Tertius Bickel
- Department Planets and Comets, Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Goettingen, Germany. .,Engineering Geology, Department for Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Jordan Aaron
- Engineering Geology, Department for Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Andrea Manconi
- Engineering Geology, Department for Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Simon Loew
- Engineering Geology, Department for Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Urs Mall
- Department Planets and Comets, Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Goettingen, Germany
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Carr MH, Crumpler LS, Cutts JA, Greeley R, Guest JE, Masursky H. Martian impact craters and emplacement of ejecta by surface flow. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/js082i028p04055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 256] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Fassett CI, Head JW, Baker DMH, Zuber MT, Smith DE, Neumann GA, Solomon SC, Klimczak C, Strom RG, Chapman CR, Prockter LM, Phillips RJ, Oberst J, Preusker F. Large impact basins on Mercury: Global distribution, characteristics, and modification history from MESSENGER orbital data. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/2012je004154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Schenk PM. Ganymede and Callisto: Complex crater formation and planetary crusts. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/91je00932] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Peale SJ. Excitation and relaxation of the wobble, precession, and libration of the Moon. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb081i011p01813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Stöffler D, Gault DE, Wedekind J, Polkowski G. Experimental hypervelocity impact into quartz sand: Distribution and shock metamorphism of ejecta. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb080i029p04062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 257] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Schenk PM. Crater formation and modification on the icy satellites of Uranus and Saturn: Depth/diameter and central peak occurrence. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb094ib04p03813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Oberbeck VR, Quaide WL, Arvidson RE, Aggarwal HR. Comparative studies of lunar, Martian, and Mercurian craters and plains. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb082i011p01681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Malin MC, Dzurisin D. Landform degradation on Mercury, the Moon, and Mars: Evidence from crater depth/diameter relationships. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb082i002p00376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Dzurisin D. The tectonic and volcanic history of mercury as inferred from studies of scarps, ridges, troughs, and other lineaments. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb083ib10p04883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Murray BC, Strom RG, Trask NJ, Gault DE. Surface history of Mercury: Implications for terrestrial planets. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2012. [DOI: 10.1029/jb080i017p02508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Denevi BW, Robinson MS, Solomon SC, Murchie SL, Blewett DT, Domingue DL, McCoy TJ, Ernst CM, Head JW, Watters TR, Chabot NL. The Evolution of Mercury’s Crust: A Global Perspective from MESSENGER. Science 2009; 324:613-8. [PMID: 19407196 DOI: 10.1126/science.1172226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 158] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Brett W. Denevi
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85251, USA
| | - Mark S. Robinson
- School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85251, USA
| | - Sean C. Solomon
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC 20015, USA
| | - Scott L. Murchie
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - David T. Blewett
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | | | - Timothy J. McCoy
- National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560, USA
| | - Carolyn M. Ernst
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
| | - James W. Head
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Thomas R. Watters
- Center for Earth and Planetary Studies, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20560, USA
| | - Nancy L. Chabot
- Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD 20723, USA
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Strom RG, Chapman CR, Merline WJ, Solomon SC, Head JW. Mercury Cratering Record Viewed from MESSENGER's First Flyby. Science 2008; 321:79-81. [DOI: 10.1126/science.1159317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 92] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robert G. Strom
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- Southwest Research Institute, 1050 Walnut Street, Suite 300, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 5241 Broad Branch Road, NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Clark R. Chapman
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- Southwest Research Institute, 1050 Walnut Street, Suite 300, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 5241 Broad Branch Road, NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - William J. Merline
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- Southwest Research Institute, 1050 Walnut Street, Suite 300, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 5241 Broad Branch Road, NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Sean C. Solomon
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- Southwest Research Institute, 1050 Walnut Street, Suite 300, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 5241 Broad Branch Road, NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - James W. Head
- Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- Southwest Research Institute, 1050 Walnut Street, Suite 300, Boulder, CO 80302, USA
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, 5241 Broad Branch Road, NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
- Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA
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Barnouin-Jha OS, Schultz PH. Lobateness of impact ejecta deposits from atmospheric interactions. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1998. [DOI: 10.1029/98je02025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Clifford SM. A model for the hydrologic and climatic behavior of water on Mars. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1993. [DOI: 10.1029/93je00225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 555] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Phillips RJ, Arvidson RE, Boyce JM, Campbell DB, Guest JE, Schaber GG, Soderblom LA. Impact Craters on Venus: Initial Analysis from Magellan. Science 1991; 252:288-97. [PMID: 17769276 DOI: 10.1126/science.252.5003.288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Magellan radar images of 15 percent of the planet show 135 craters of probable impact origin. Craters more than 15 km across tend to contain central peaks, multiple central peaks, and peak rings. Many craters smaller than 15 km exhibit multiple floors or appear in clusters; these phenomena are attributed to atmospheric breakup of incoming meteoroids. Additionally, the atmosphere appears to have prevented the formation of primary impact craters smaller than about 3 km and produced a deficiency in the number of craters smaller than about 25 km across. Ejecta is found at greater distances than that predicted by simple ballistic emplacement, and the distal ends of some ejecta deposits are lobate. These characteristics may represent surface flows of material initially entrained in the atmosphere. Many craters are surrounded by zones of low radar albedo whose origin may have been deformation of the surface by the shock or pressure wave associated with the incoming meteoroid. Craters are absent from several large areas such as a 5 million square kilometer region around Sappho Patera, where the most likely explanation for the dearth of craters is volcanic resurfacing. There is apparently a spectrum of surface ages on Venus ranging approximately from 0 to 800 million years, and therefore Venus must be a geologically active planet.
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Spudis PD, Davis PA. A chemical and petrological model of the lunar crust and implications for lunar crustal origin. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1986. [DOI: 10.1029/jb091ib13p00e84] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Harmon JK, Campbell DB, Bindschadler DL, Head JW, Shapiro II. Radar altimetry of Mercury: A Preliminary analysis. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1986. [DOI: 10.1029/jb091ib01p00385] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Grimm RE. Penecontemporaneous metamorphism, fragmentation, and reassembly of ordinary chondrite parent bodies. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1985. [DOI: 10.1029/jb090ib02p02022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Davis PA, Soderblom LA. Modeling crater topography and albedo from monoscopic Viking Orbiter images: 1. Methodology. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1984. [DOI: 10.1029/jb089ib11p09449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Pike RJ. Comment on ‘A schematic model of crater modification by gravity’ by H. J. Melosh. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1983. [DOI: 10.1029/jb088ib03p02500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Mizutani H, Kawakami SI, Takagi Y, Kato M, Kumazawa M. Cratering experiments in sands and a trial for general scaling law. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1983. [DOI: 10.1029/jb088is02p0a835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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Grieve RAF, Head JW. The Manicouagan Impact Structure: An analysis of its original dimensions and form. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1983. [DOI: 10.1029/jb088is02p0a807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Hale WS, Grieve RAF. Volumetric analysis of complex lunar craters: Implications for basin ring formation. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1982. [DOI: 10.1029/jb087is01p00a65] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Fudali RF, Milton DJ, Fredriksson K, Dube A. Morphology of Lonar Crater, India: Comparisons and implications. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1980. [DOI: 10.1007/bf00897591] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Croft SK, Kieffer SW, Ahrens TJ. Low-velocity impact craters in ice and ice-saturated sand with implications for Martian crater count ages. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1979. [DOI: 10.1029/jb084ib14p08023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Settle M, Head JW. The role of rim slumping in the modification of lunar impact craters. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1979. [DOI: 10.1029/jb084ib06p03081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Calame O, Mulholland JD. Lunar Crater Giordano Bruno: A.D. 1178 Impact Observations Consistent with Laser Ranging Results. Science 1978; 199:875-7. [PMID: 17757584 DOI: 10.1126/science.199.4331.875] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The hypothesis of Hartung, that the impact formation of lunar crater Giordano Bruno (103 degrees east, 36 degrees north) was observed and recorded 800 years ago, is considered in the context of data from the Luna 24 mission and laser range observations. It is concluded that (i) the event would certainly have been visible, and (ii) current determinations of the free libration in longitude in the moon's rotation are consistent with the hypothesis. Such a study cannot prove Hartung's interpretation, but it is nonetheless supportive of it.
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Malin MC, Dzurisin D. Modification of fresh crater landforms: Evidence from the Moon and Mercury. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 1978. [DOI: 10.1029/jb083ib01p00233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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McElhinny MW, Taylor SR, Stevenson DJ. Limits to the expansion of Earth, Moon, Mars and Mercury and to changes in the gravitational constant. Nature 1978. [DOI: 10.1038/271316a0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Carr MH, Masursky H, Baum WA, Blasius KR, Briggs GA, Cutts JA, Duxbury T, Greeley R, Guest JE, Smith BA, Soderblom LA, Veverka J, Wellman JB. Preliminary Results from the Viking Orbiter Imaging Experiment. Science 1976; 193:766-76. [PMID: 17747777 DOI: 10.1126/science.193.4255.766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
During its first 30 orbits around Mars, the Viking orbiter took approximately 1000 photographic frames of the surface of Mars with resolutions that ranged from 100 meters to a little more than 1 kilometer. Most were of potential landing sites in Chryse Planitia and Cydonia and near Capri Chasma. Contiguous high-resolution coverage in these areas has led to an increased understanding of surface processes, particularly cratering, fluvial, and mass-wasting phenomena. Most of the surfaces examined appear relatively old, channel features abound, and a variety of features suggestive of permafrost have been identified. The ejecta patterns around large craters imply that fluid flow of ejecta occurred after ballistic deposition. Variable features in the photographed area appear to have changed little since observed 5 years ago from Mariner 9. A variety of atmospheric phenomena were observed, including diffuse morning hazes, both stationary and moving discrete white clouds, and wave clouds covering extensive areas.
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