NASA Reference Publication 1057 Handbook of Lunar Materials C g S _ F I L g _ COPY FEBRUARY 1980 NASA Reference Publication 1057 Handbook of Lunar Materials _aitea 6), Richard J. Williams Lyudon B. Johnson Space Center Houston, Texas James j. Jadwick Lockheed Electronics Co., Inc. Houston, Texas NI A National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scientific and Technical Information Office 1980 Contents Section Page 1. GENERAL INFORMATION ........................ 1 LUNAR SURFACE ................................ 2 CRATER MORPHOLOGY .......................... 5 LUNAR GEOLOGICAL TIME SCALE ............... 6 APOLLO LANDING SITES .......................... 11 OTHER INFORMATION SOURCES ................. 11 . LUNAR MINERALS ............................... 17 OTHER INFORMATION SOURCES ................. 19 PYROXENE ...................................... 19 Density and Molar Volume ........................ 21 X-Ray Crystallographic Data ....................... 22 Thermal Expansion ............................... 24 Compressibility and Elastic Constants ............... 24 Seismic Velocities ................................ 25 Strength and Ductility ............................. 26 Viscosity ........................................ 27 Melting and Transformation Points ................. 27 Thermodynamic Properties ........................ 27 Electrical Properties ............................... 31 Thermal Conductivity ............................. 31 Magnetic Properties ............................... 31 OLIVINE ......................................... 32 Density and Molar Volume ........................ 33 X-Ray Crystallographic Data ....................... 34 Thermal Expansion ............................... 34 Compressibility and Elastic Constants ............... 35 Seismic Velocities ................................ 38 Strength and Ductility ............................. 39 Viscosity ........................................ 39 iii Section Page MeltingandTransformationPoints ................. 39 ThermodynamicProperties........................ 40 ElectricalProperties............................... 42 ThermalConductivity............................. 43 MagneticProperties............................... 43 PLAGIOCLASEFELDSPAR........................ 44 DensityandMolarVolume........................ 45 X-RayCrystallographicData ....................... 46 ThermalExpansion............................... 46 CompressibilityandElasticConstants............... 47 SeismicVelocities ................................ 48 StrengthandDuctility ............................. 48 Viscosity........................................ 49 MeltingandTransformationPoints ................. 49 ThermodynamicProperties........................ 50 Electrical Properties ............................... 51 Thermal Conductivity ............................. 52 Magnetic Properties ............................... 52 ILMENITE ........................................ 53 Density and Molar Volume ........................ 54 X-Ray Crystallographic Data ....................... 54 Thermal Expansion ............................... 55 Compressibility and Elastic Constants ............... 55 Seismic Velocities ................................ 55 Strength and Ductility ............................. 55 Viscosity ........................................ 55 Melting and Transformation Points ................. 55 Thermodynamic Properties ........................ 56 Electrical Properties ............................... 57 Thermal Conductivity ............................. 57 Magnetic Properties ............................... 57 REFERENCES .................................... 58 iv Section Page 3. LUNAR MATERIALS ............................. 59 REGOLITH ....................................... 59 Lunar Soil Densities .............................. 61 Color ........................................... 63 Grain Size Characteristics .......................... 63 Particle Types and Relative Abundance ............. 65 Maturity of Lunar Soils ........................... 66 IGNEOUS ROCKS ................................. 72 Mare Basalts ..................................... 72 Plutonic Rocks ................................... 74 Pyroclastic Materials .............................. 76 Granite Glasses .................................. 76 Synthetic Lunar Sample ........................... 78 BRECCIAS ........................................ 84 Vitric-Matrix Breccias ............................. 85 Light-Matrix Breccias ............................. 87 Cataclastic Anorthosites ........................... 87 Crystalline-Matrix Breccias ........................ 88 Granulitic-Matrix Breccias ......................... 90 REFERENCES .................................... 92 . ELEMENTS ....................................... 93 HYDROGEN ...................................... 93 SILICON AND SILICA ............................. 96 Density and Molar Volume ........................ 96 X-Ray Crystallographic Data ....................... 97 Thermal Expansion ............................... 98 Compressibility and Elastic Constants ............... 100 Strength and Ductility ............................. 102 Melting and Transformation Points ................. 104 Thermodynamic Properties ........................ 104 Electrical Properties ............................... 107 Thermal Conductivity ............................. 108 Section Page ALUMINUM ...................................... 109 TITANIUM ....................................... 1l0 IRON ............................................. ll0 CALCIUM ........................................ 111 MAGNESIUM..................................... 112 OXYGEN ......................................... 112 VOLATILEELEMENTS........................... 113 REFERENCES.................................... 116 APPENDIXA--GLOSSARY........................ ll7 vi Tables Table Page 1-1 Bulk Lunar Properties ........................ 1 2-I Lunar Minerals ............................. 18 2-II Abundance of Lunar Pyroxene ................ 20 2-III Analyses of Typical Lunar Pyroxenes .......... 20 2-IV Abundance of Lunar Olivine .................. 32 2-V Analyses of Typical Lunar Olivine ............. 33 2-VI Abundance of Plagioclase in Lunar Materials ... 44 2-VII Analyses of Typical Lunar Plagioclase ......... 45 2-VIII Abundance of Ilmenite in Lunar Materials ...... 53 2-IX Analyses of Typical Lunar Ilmenite ............ 54 3-I Mean Regolith Thickness ..................... 60 3-1I Summary of Results From Lunar Soil Density Studies ................................... 61 3-III Grain Size Fractions for Apollo 11 Soil 10084,853 (Old Soil) ................................ 64 3-1V Petrography of a Series of Size Fractions From 71061,1 (a Typical Apollo 17 Mare Soil) ...... 67 3-V Petrography of a Series of Size Fractions From 72441,7 (a Typical South Massif Soil) ........ 68 3-VI Compilation of Maturity Indices .............. 69 3-VII Range of Major Element Chemistry ........... 72 3-VII1 Chemistry of Mare Basalts .................... 73 3-IX Range of Modal Mineralogy (vol.%) ........... 75 3-X Ranges of Chemical Compositions for Major Minerals (wt.%) ........................... 75 3-XI Modal Mineralogy of Plutonic Rocks (vol.%) ... 76 3-XII Mineral Chemistries of Plutonic Rocks (wt.%) .. 77 3-XIII Chemistry of Plutonic and Pyroclastic Samples .................................. 78 vii Table Page 3-XIV Chemical Composition of SLS ................ 79 3-XV Chemistry of Breccias ........................ 86 3-XVI Chemical Composition of Minerals From Cataclastic Anorthosites (wt.%) ............. 88 3-XVII Chemical Composition and Modal Mineralogy for Minerals From Crystalline-Matrix Breccias (wt.%) ................................... 89 3-XVIII Chemical Composition of Minerals From Granulitic-Matrix Breccias (wt.%) ........... 91 4-I Abundance Ranges Indigenous of Lunar Materials ................................. 94 4-1I Typical Solar-Wind Gas Concentrations of Lunar Fines .............................. 94 4-III X-Ray Crystallographic Data for SiO2 .......... 97 4-IV Condensed Table of Physical Properties of Aluminum ............................... 109 Figures Figure Page 1-1 Lick Observatory photograph L4 of the full Moon. The albedo differences between mare, highlands, and fresh ejecta are enhanced in this photograph ..... 1-2 Lick Observatory photograph L9, a composite of two half-Moon photographs. The high density of craters in the highlands shows up well in a pole-to-pole band in the center of the Moon's near side. (Underlined labels refer to craters directly beneath the label; other labels refer to mare basins.) .................... 1-3 Data from the X-ray fluorescent experiment that or- bited the Moon during Apollo 15 and 16. The map shows one typical orbit from each mission. The top and bottom graphs show changes in the ratio of AI to Si. Low values are consistent with the feldspar-poor mare regions; high values are consistent with the feldspar-rich highlands ........................ 4 viii Figure Page 1-4 Numberdensityof craters per unit area as a function of the age of a surface. Data points (bars) are derived by crater counts surrounding each landing site, and matching those values with the radiometric age of rocks returned from each site. The dashed line is an extrapolation to zero based on the cratering model ....................................... 1-5 Generalized chart of lunar stratigraphy. The time of the Copernican-Eratosthenian boundary is unknown, and the time of the Eratosthenian-Imbrian