Featured Images

Towering Peak

The summit of the unnamed peak in the foreground (50.2° S, 236.6° E) has an elevation of 6710 meters, about 7000 meters of relief relative to the low point at the bottom of the image. The two peaks on the horizon, 200 kilometers in the...

Published on 15 Jun 2018

South Massif Landslide

By lunar standards South Massif is a relatively modest mountain, but with a rich history (geologic and exploration). The massif is about 7000 meters across at the base and 2300 meters tall; M1266925685LR, incidence angle 33°, slew angle...

Published on 09 Jun 2018

Hell Q Crater

Recent impact craters are some of the most spectacular landforms on the Moon! For example, Hell Q (3.4 kilometers in diameter, 33.0° S, 355.5° E) shows off pristine impact melt that lined the crater walls and pooled in the bottom, now...

Published on 27 May 2018

Hawke Crater

Hawke crater, 13.2 km wide, is noticeably tilted because the impactor - an asteroid or a comet - that excavated it struck the sloping inner wall of Grotrian crater. Visible are light-colored rays that attest to the crater's youth, as...

Published on 03 May 2018

Curiously Fast Degradation of Small Lunar Craters

Taurus-Littrow valley, geologic exploration target for Apollo 17 and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera study team led by Dr. Prasun Mahanti.  Center latitude 20.15°N, center longitude 30.98°E, image 18 km wide, image...

Published on 24 Apr 2018

Montes Carpatus

The Montes Carpatus region (16.67°N, 332.93°E) contains numerous examples of volcanic materials. The low albedo (dark) patterns may indicate pyroclastic (explosive) material that erupted over 3 billion years ago. Tobias Mayer G crater...

Published on 08 Mar 2018

Luminous Pierazzo Crater

The Moon continues to surprise us with its beauty! When did this magnificent crater form? From its pristine state it looks as if it could have formed yesterday, however erosion  proceeds slowly on the Moon. NAC M1265532953LR, scene...

Published on 13 Feb 2018

Mountains of the Moon: Zeeman Mons

The largest mountains on the Moon rival those of the Earth. Here Zeeman mons (informal name) rises more than 7,570 m (24,500 ft, 73.39°S, 213.31°E) above the floor of Zeeman crater, and the flank of Zeeman Y is just visible on the right...

Published on 20 Nov 2017

2017 Eclipse as Seen from the Moon

Earth as seen from the Moon during the total eclipse on 21 August 2017. The shadow of the Moon is centered over Hopkinsville, Kentucky (18:25:30.386 UTC or 1:25:30 pm Central Daylight Time in Kentucky; E1257979198R, NASA/GSFC/Arizona...

Published on 29 Aug 2017

New View of Rare Volcanism on the Moon

The Compton-Belkovich Volcanic Complex central caldera complex was first discovered in LROC images (61.20° N, 100.27° E; WAC mosaic with NAC image M103852760R in the center). Variations in the reflectance values were used to estimate...

Published on 05 Jun 2017

What's Next for LRO?

LRO and LROC will continue to explore the Moon during the mission's third extended mission to understand fundamental processes that shape our Solar System.

Published on 22 Aug 2016

New Evidence For Young Lunar Volcanism!

One of many newly-discovered young volcanic deposits on the Moon (4.330°N, 33.750°E), this example is near the crater Maskelyne. The direction of sunlight is from the right and north is up, NAC M1123370138R [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...

Published on 12 Oct 2014

The Original Interplanetary Mountaineers

Traverse plots of the first two Apollo 15 EVAs, on which astronauts Scott and Irwin ventured to the lower slopes of Mons Hadley Delta (center left); numbers indicate elevations above the landing site (LM) (oblique LROC NAC M1123519889;...

Published on 20 Jun 2014

Soaring Over Mighty Mt. Hadley

An oblique view, looking east-to-west over the Apennine Mountains towards Hadley Rille (upper left) (LROC NAC M1123519889, north is to the right). A long shadow is cast by mighty Mt. Hadley (center right). Nestled between the Apennines...

Published on 18 Jun 2014

The Complex Case at Lassell K

An early morning view looking east-to-west from an altitude of 86 km across the southern portion of the Lassell Massif, an irregularly shaped series of hills and steep-walled depressions. North is to the right; oblique LROC NAC mosaic...

Published on 15 May 2014

A Splendid View of Larmor Q

LROC NAC view of the south wall and rim of splendiferous Larmor Q crater, looking obliquely east-to-west from an altitude of 60 km; image M174081337 [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 13 May 2014

Still There!

Four LROC NAC views of the Chang'e 3 landing site: A) before landing, 30 June 2013, B) after landing, 25 December 2013, C) 21 January 2014, D) 17 February 2014. Each image is enlarged by a factor of two, width of each is 200 meters (656...

Published on 04 Mar 2014

Overprinting Orientale

Fractured crater draped with ejecta from the Orientale basin, located south of Buffon crater. Portion of NAC oblique image M1128039712; looking west to east; downslope to the right [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University].

Published on 13 Feb 2014

Tsiolkovskiy Central Peak Oblique

An LROC NAC oblique image (M1098059280LR) of the central peak of Tsiolkovskiy Crater. The image is approximately 25 km in diameter, and the central peak rises ~3400 m above the crater floor. North points left [NASA/GSFC/Arizona State...

Published on 19 Nov 2013

The Lunar Alps

A portion of an LROC NAC oblique image (M177602135LR) of a rille, seen in the center of this image running northwest to southeast through the Montes Alpes region. Image width is approximately 15 km. North is to the right...

Published on 15 Nov 2013