Abstract
Possible lunar lava tube skylight observed by SELENE cameras
ISAS, JAXA, Sagamihara, Japan
NTT DATA CCS Corporation, Tokyo, Japan
Tokyo, Japan
ISAS, JAXA, Sagamihara, Japan
Institut für Planetologie, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster, Germany
Institut für Planetologie, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität, Münster, Germany
University Museum, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
ISAS, JAXA, Sagamihara, Japan
ISAS, JAXA, Sagamihara, Japan
Center for Global Environmental Research, NIES, Tsukuba, Japan
NTT DATA CCS Corporation, Tokyo, Japan
Mitsubishi Space Software Co., Ltd., Tsukuba, Japan
Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
We discovered a vertical hole on the Moon, which is a possible lava tube skylight, using data from SELENE's two high-resolution cameras: the Terrain Camera and the Multi-band Imager. The hole is nearly circular, 65 m in diameter, and located in a sinuous rille at the Marius Hills region, a volcanic province on the lunar nearside. We observed the hole at various solar illumination conditions and estimated its depth to be 80 to 88 m. The depth/diameter ratio is much larger than for typical impact craters. There are neither conspicuous deposits indicating volcanic eruptions from the hole, nor are there pit craters adjacent to the hole that could be related to an underlying fault or dike. The area around the hole is covered by a thin (20 to 25 m) lava sheet, which may help protect the lava tube from collapse due to meteorite bombardment.
Received 20 August 2009; accepted 13 October 2009; published 12 November 2009.
Citation: (2009), Possible lunar lava tube skylight observed by SELENE cameras, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L21206, doi:10.1029/2009GL040635.
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