PUBLICATIONS Geophysical Research Letters RESEARCH LETTER Identification of buried lunar impact craters from GRAIL 10.1002/2015GL067394 data and implications for the nearside maria Key Points: Alexander J. Evans1,2,3, Jason M. Soderblom1, Jeffrey C. Andrews-Hanna4, Sean C. Solomon2,5, • One-hundred four buried crater 1 candidates on the lunar nearside are and Maria T. Zuber fi identi ed from gravity anomalies 1 • The density, thickness, and volume of Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, 2 3 infilling deposits are determined Massachusetts, USA, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, New York, USA, Now at Planetary Science Directorate, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado, USA, 4Planetary Science Directorate, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado, USA, 5Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Supporting Information: • Figures S1–S7 and Table S1 and S2 Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, USA Caption • Table S1 • Table S2 Abstract Gravity observations from the dual Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) spacecraft have revealed more than 100 quasi-circular mass anomalies, 26–300 km in diameter, on the lunar nearside. Correspondence to: These anomalies are interpreted to be impact craters filled primarily by mare deposits, and their characteristics A. J. Evans, fl
[email protected] are consistent with those of impact structures that formed prior to, and during, intervals of ooding of feldspathic terrane by mare basalt lavas. We determine that mare deposits have an average density contrast of þ300 À3 850À kg m relative to the surrounding crust. The presence of a large population of volcanically buried Citation: 200 Evans,A.J.,J.M.Soderblom,J.C.Andrews- craters with minimal topographic expression and diameters up to 300 km requires an average nearside mare Hanna, S.