Subsurface Structures at the Chang'e-3 Landing Site: Interpretations from Orbital and In-Situ Imagery Data

Le Qiao; Zhiyong Xiao; Jiannan Zhao; Long Xiao

doi:10.1007/s12583-015-0655-3

Volume 27 Issue 4

Jul 2016

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Journal of Earth Science > 2016 > 27(4): 707-715.

Le Qiao, Zhiyong Xiao, Jiannan Zhao, Long Xiao. Subsurface Structures at the Chang'e-3 Landing Site: Interpretations from Orbital and In-Situ Imagery Data. Journal of Earth Science, 2016, 27(4): 707-715. doi: 10.1007/s12583-015-0655-3

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Le Qiao, Zhiyong Xiao, Jiannan Zhao, Long Xiao. Subsurface Structures at the Chang'e-3 Landing Site: Interpretations from Orbital and In-Situ Imagery Data. Journal of Earth Science, 2016, 27(4): 707-715. doi: 10.1007/s12583-015-0655-3

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Subsurface Structures at the Chang'e-3 Landing Site: Interpretations from Orbital and In-Situ Imagery Data

doi: 10.1007/s12583-015-0655-3

Planetary Science Institute, School of Earth Sciences, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China

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Corresponding author: Long Xiao, longxiao@cug.edu.cn
Received Date: 18 Nov 2014
Accepted Date: 25 Mar 2015
Publish Date: 12 Jul 2016

Abstract

Abstract

The Chang'e-3 (CE-3) spacecraft successfully landed on one of the youngest mare surfaces on the Moon in December 2013. The Yutu rover carried by CE-3 was equipped with a radar system that could reveal subsurface structures in unprecedented details, which would facilitate understanding regional and global evolutionary history of the Moon. Based on regional geology, cratering scaling, and morphological study, here we quantify the subsurface structures of the landing site using high-resolution orbital and in-situ imagery data. Three layers of lunar regolith, two layers of basalt units, and one layer of ejecta deposits are recognized at the subsurface of the landing site, and their thicknesses are deduced based on the imagery data. These results could serve as essential references for the on-going interpretation of the CE-3 radar data. The ability to validate our theoretical subsurface structure using CE-3 in-situ radar observations will improve the methods for quantifying lunar subsurface structure using crater morphologies and scaling.
- Chang'e-3,
- subsurface structure,
- impact cratering,
- Lunar Penetrating Radar,
- lunar exploration

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References(41)

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Subsurface Structures at the Chang'e-3 Landing Site: Interpretations from Orbital and In-Situ Imagery Data

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