The Geology of the Moon and Mars

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School

University of Texas, Permian Basin *

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Course

1101.701

Subject

Geology

Date

Apr 3, 2024

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docx

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8

Uploaded by ChiefMask13618 on coursehero.com

The Geology of the Moon and Mars OBJECTIVES 1. Use satellite data of the surface of the Moon and Mars to identify various geological features 2. Use the observed features to infer the history of the surface of the Moon and Mars PART 1: LUNAR GEOLOGY Using Google Moon , you can explore the surface of the moon including the Apollo landing sites. If you zoom way in on the Apollo landing sites, you can see specific details about the missions. Explore each of the features below and answer the associated questions: Contingency Sample: ● The first manned mission to the moon was Apollo 11. You can view the landing site on Google Moon if you know precisely where to look. Watch this teacher video , then find the Apollo 11 landing site for yourself. ● The first thing that Neil Armstrong did when he walked out onto the moon was collect a “contingency sample.” You can actually watch him collect this sample in this historic NASA video , captured by Buzz Aldrin from the top of the lunar module. ● Why do you think that it was critical for Armstrong to collect this contingency sample of lunar rocks and soil before doing anything else? Armstrong had begun taking pictures with a Hasselblad Camera, but was shortly reminded by the control room back in Houston To first gather the “contingency sample” that was needed in order to ensure that scientists on Earth would have at least a small sampling of lunar rock and soil. Hadley Rille: ● The Apollo 15 mission landed in close proximity to the Hadley Rille. Watch this teacher video , which shows how to find the landing site in Google Moon. ● As Apollo 15 was descending to the lunar surface, astronauts captured this video , which shows the rille below them. What an unusual site!
● So, what is a “rille” and how does it form? Planetary geologists still aren’t 100% sure, but the best evidence suggests that these meandering trenches are caused when an underground lava tube collapses. While there are no active lava flows on the moon, there is ample evidence that lava once flowed across the surface. ● Zoom out a little from the Apollo 15 landing site and then search the lunar surface for other examples of rilles. Take a screenshot of the rille that you found and insert it in the space below. Anorthosite : ● One of the primary missions of Apollo 15 was to locate and return a special type of rock called Anorthosite. Watch this historic NASA mission video to see the moment Apollo 15 astronauts first located the rocks on the moon. ● Why was this kind of rock of particular interest to the Apollo science team? Ferroan Anorthosite is one of the best known rocks of the Apollo collection. Orange Soil: ● One of the most interesting geological discoveries of the Apollo missions happened during Apollo 17, the final manned mission to the moon and the first to send an actual geologist to the surface of the moon - Dr. Harrison Schmitt. Watch this teacher video for help locating the Apollo 17 landing site in Google Moon.
● Check out this photo of the Apollo 17 astronauts at Shorty Crater. See if you can find what made the astronauts so excited at this site. ● Watch this teacher video to see exactly what Dr. Schmitt discovered it at the edge of Shorty Crater. ● What appears to have caused the orange soil and why was this of interest to lunar scientists? Many geologists believe that the moon died geologically and then changed a little since. Next, explore Google Moon visually , zooming in to find examples of each of the following. When you have found an example, take a screenshot and copy/paste it into this document. 1. Capture a screenshot of a large crater on the moon, which shows clear ejecta and rays coming from the crater. (For an illustration of ejecta and rays on the planet Mercury, visit 2:08 in the teacher video The Surface of Mercury .) 2. Capture a screenshot, which shows smaller craters on top of larger craters that were already formed.
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