Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Destruction of Small Lunar Craters

  • Published:
Solar System Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The paper discusses three types of processes of destruction of small lunar craters: (1) destruction by overlapping craters; (2) destruction due to filling with ejecta from neighboring and remote craters; and (3) destruction due to the displacement of surface material by various slope processes. These processes act together, but the role of each in a specific situation and at different stages of the evolution of a crater may change. Their intensity over the past three billion years of the Moon’s history has been noticeably lower than in previous eras. This circumstance needs be taken into account when estimating the time of the potential existence of craters in different periods of the Moon’s history.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 5.
Fig. 6.
Fig. 7.
Fig. 8.
Fig. 9.

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  1. Bazilevskii, A.T., Density of distribution of small lunar craters: models and actual distribution, Kosm. Issled., 1973, vol. 11, no. 4, pp. 612–621.

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  2. Basilevsky, A.T., On the evolution rate of small lunar craters, Proc. 7th Lunar and Planetary Science Conf., Houston, TX: Lunar Planet. Inst., 1976, pp. 1005–1020.

  3. Bazilevskii, A.T. and Popovich, V.D., The evolution of small craters on the slopes of the lunar relief, Izv. Akad. Nauk SSSR, Ser. Geol., 1976, no. 6, pp. 76–80.

  4. Bazilevskiy, A.T. and Popovich, V.D., Evolution of small craters on lunar relief slopes, Int. Geol. Rev., 1979, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 277–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Basilevsky, A.T., Florensky, C.P., and Ronca, L.B., A possible lunar outcrop: a study of Lunokhod-2 data, Moon, 1977, vol. 17, pp. 19–28.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. Basilevsky, A.T., Kreslavsky, M.A., Karachevtseva, I.P., and Gusakova, E.N., Morphometry of small impact craters in the Lunokhod-1 and Lunokhod-2 study areas, Planet. Space Sci., 2014, vol. 92, pp. 77–87.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  7. Basilevsky, A.T., Head, J.W., Horz, F., and Ramsley, K., Survival times of meter-sized rock boulders on the surface of airless bodies, Planet. Space Sci., 2015, vol. 117, pp. 312–328.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  8. Basilevsky, A.T., Kozlova, N.A., Zavyalov, I.Yu., Karachevtseva, I.P., and Kreslavsky, M.A., Morphometric studies of the Copernicus and Tycho secondary craters on the Moon: dependence of crater degradation rate on crater size, Planet. Space Sci., 2018, vol. 62, pp. 31–40.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  9. Basilevsky, A.T., Krasilnikov, S.S., Ivanov, M.A., Malenkov, M.I., Michael, G.G., Liu, T., Head, J.W., Scott, D.R., and Lark, L., Potential lunar base on Mons Malapert: topographic, geologic and trafficability considerations, Sol. Syst. Res., 2019, vol. 53, no. 5, pp. 383–398.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  10. Chorowicz, J., The East African rift system, J. Afr. Earth Sci., 2005, vol. 43, pp. 379–410.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  11. Drozd, R.J., Hohenberg, C.M., Morgan, C.J., and Ralston, C.E., Cosmic-ray exposure history at the Apollo 16 and other lunar sites: lunar surface dynamics, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 1974, vol. 38, pp. 1625–1642.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  12. Fassett, C.I. and Head, J.W., The timing of Martian valley network activity: constraints from buffered crater counting, Icarus, 2008, vol. 195, no. 1, pp. 61–89.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  13. Florenskii, K.P., Bazilevskii, A.T., Gurshtein, A.A., Zezin, R.B., Pronin, A.A., Polosukhin, V.P., Popova, Z.V., and Taborko, I.M., The surface relief of the Moon seas, in Sovremennye predstavleniya o Lune (Modern Concepts about the Moon), Moscow: Nauka, 1972, pp. 21–45.

  14. Florenskii, K.P., Bazilevskii, A.T., Gurshtein, A.A., Zasetskii, V.V., Pronin, A.A., and Polosukhin, V.P., Geological and morphological analysis of the Lunokhod-2 study area, Dokl. Akad. Nauk SSSR, 1974, vol. 214, no. 1, pp. 75–78.

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  15. Florenskii, K.P., Bazilevskii, A.T., and Ivanov, A.V., Role of exogenic factors in development of the Moon relief, in Kosmokhimiya Luny i planet (Cosmochemistry of the Moon and Planets), Moscow: Nauka, 1975, pp. 439–452.

  16. Florenskii, K.P., Bazilevskii, A.T., Bobina, N.N., Burba, G.A., Grebennik, N.N., Kuz’min, R.O., Polosukhin, V.P., Popovich, V.D., and Pronin, A.A., Transformation of the lunar surface in the Lemonier region according to the study results on Lunokhod-2, in Tektonika i strukturnaya geologiya. Planetologiya (Tectonics and Morphological Geology. Planetology), Moscow: Nauka, 1976, pp. 205–234.

  17. Hiesinger, H., Head, J.W., Wolf, U., Jaumann, R., and Neukum, G., Ages and stratigraphy of lunar mare basalts: a synthesis, in Recent Advances and Current Research Issues in Lunar Stratigraphy, Boulder, CO: Geol. Soc. Am., 2011.

    Google Scholar 

  18. Hörz, F., Grieve, R., Heiken, G., Spudis, P., and Binder, A., Lunar surface processes, in Lunar Sourcebook: A User’s Guide to the Moon, Heken, G.H., Vaniman, D.T., and French, B.M., Eds., Cambridge Univ. Press, 1991, pp. 61–120.

    Google Scholar 

  19. Ivanov, M.A., Abdrakhimov, A.M., Basilevsky, A.T., Demidov, N.E., Guseva, E.N., Head, J.W., Hiesinger, H., Kohanov, A.A., and Krasilnikov, S.S., Geological characterization of the three high-priority landing sites for the Luna-Glob mission, Planet. Space Sci., 2018, vol. 162, pp. 190–206.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  20. Karachevtseva, I.P., Kozlova, N.A., Kokhanov, A.A., Zubarev, A.E., Nadezhdina, I.E., Patratiy, V.D., Konopikhin, A.A ., Basilevsky, A.T., Abdrakhimov, A.M., Oberst, J., Haase, I., Jolliffe, B.L., Plescia, J.B., and Robinson, M.S., Cartography of the Luna-21 landing site and Lunokhod-2 traverse area based on Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera images and surface archive TV-panoramas, Icarus, 2017, vol. 283, pp. 104–121.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  21. Kneissl, T., Michael, G.G., Platz, T., and Walter, S.H.G., Age determination of linear surface features using the buffered crater counting approach—case studies of the Sirenum and Fortuna Fossae graben systems on Mars, Icarus, 2015, vol. 250, pp. 384–394.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  22. Kocharov, G.E. and Viktorov, S.V., The chemical composition of the lunar surface in the Lunokhod-2 study area, Dokl. Akad. Nauk SSSR, 1974, vol. 214, no. 1, pp. 71–74.

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  23. Krasilnikov, S.S., Basilevsky, A.T., Ivanov, M.A., Abdrakhimov, A.M., and Kokhanov, A.A., Steepness of slopes at the Luna-Glob landing sites: estimating by the shaded area percentage in the LROC NAC images, Sol. Syst. Res., 2018, vol. 52, no. 2, pp. 87–97.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  24. Kumar, P.S., Sruthi, U., Krishna, N., et al., Recent shallow moonquake and impact-triggered boulder falls on the Moon: new insights from Schrödinger basin, J. Geophys. Res.: Planets, 2016, vol. 121, pp. 147–179.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  25. Michael, G.G., Planetary surface dating from crater size–frequency distribution measurements: multiple resurfacing episodes and differential isochron fitting, Icarus, 2013, vol. 226, pp. 885–890.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  26. Morris, E.C. and Shoemaker, E.M., Craters, in Surveyor Project Final Report, Part II: Science Results, Pasadena, CA: Jet Propulsion Lab., Calif. Inst. Technol., 1968, pp. 69–86.

  27. Neukum, G., Meteorite Bombardment and Dating of Planetary Surfaces, Washington, DC: Natl. Aeronaut. Space Admin., 1983.

    Google Scholar 

  28. Neukum, G., Ivanov, B., and Hartmann, W.K., Cratering records in the inner solar system in relation to the lunar reference system, Space Sci. Rev., 2001, vol. 96, pp. 55–86.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  29. Robinson, M.S., Brylow, S.M., Tschimmel, M., et al., Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) instrument overview, Space Sci. Rev., 2010, vol. 150, pp. 81–124.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  30. Ruzhich, V.V., Seismotektonicheskaya destruktsiya v zemnoi kore Baikal’skoi riftovoi zony (Seismotectonic Destruction in the Earth Crust of Baikal Rift Zone), Novosibirsk: Sib. Otd., Ross. Akad. Nauk, 1997.

  31. Shoemaker, E.M., Batson, R.M., Bean, A.L., et al., Geology of the Apollo-12 landing site, in Apollo-12 Preliminary Science Report No. NASA SP-235, Ch. 10: Preliminary Geologic Investigation of the Apollo 12 Landing Site, Washington, DC: Natl. Aeronaut. Space Admin., 1970, part A, pp. 133–134.

  32. Swann, G.A., Bailey, N.G., Batson, R.M., et al., Preliminary geologic investigations of the Apollo 14 landing site, in Apollo-14 Preliminary Science Report No. NASA SP-272, Washington, DC: Natl. Aeronaut. Space Admin., 1971, ch. 3, pp. 39–85.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Swann, G.A., Bailey, N.G., Batson, R.M., et al., Preliminary geologic investigation of the Apollo 15 landing site, in Apollo-15 Preliminary Science Report No. NASA SP-289, Washington, DC: Natl. Aeronaut. Space Admin., 1972, ch. 5, pp. 5-23–5-24.

    Google Scholar 

  34. Tanaka, K.L., A new time-saving crater-count technique, with application to narrow features, in NASA Technical Memorandum No. TM-85127, Washington, DC: Natl. Aeronaut. Space Admin., 1982, pp. 123–125.

  35. Taylor, G.J., Warren, P., Ryder, G., Delano, J., Pieters, C., and Lofgren, G., Lunar rocks, in Lunar Source Book: A User’s Guide to the Moon, Heiken, G.H., Vaniman, D.T., and French, B.M., Eds., Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1991, pp. 183–284.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Trask, N.J., Size and Spatial Distribution of Craters Estimated from Ranger Photographs: Jet Propulsion Laboratory Technical Report 32-800, Pasadena, CA, 1966, pp. 252–263.

  37. Tye, A.R., Fassett, C.I., Head, III, J.W., Mazarico, E., Basilevsky, A.T., Neumann, G.A., Smith, D.E., and Zuber, M.T., The age of lunar south circumpolar craters Haworth, Shoemaker, Faustini, and Shackleton: implications for regional geology, surface processes, and volatile sequestration, Icarus, 2015, vol. 255, pp. 70–77. https://link.springer.com/journal/11038.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  38. Ulrich, G.E., Geology of North Ray crater, in Geology of the Apollo 16 Area, Central Lunar Highlands: Geological Survey Professional Paper 1048, Washington, DC: US Gov. Printing Off., 1981, pp. 45–81.

    Google Scholar 

  39. van der Bogert, C.H., Clark, J.D., Hiesinger, H., Banks, M.E., Watters, T.R., and Robinson, M.S., How old are lunar lobate scarps? 1. Seismic resetting of crater size-frequency distributions, Icarus, 2018, vol. 306, pp. 225–242.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  40. Wasserburg, G.J. and Papanastassiou, D.A., Age of an Apollo 15 mare basalt; Lunar crust and mantle evolution, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 1971, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 97–104.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  41. Watters, T.R., Robinson, M.S., Beyer, R.A., et al., Evidence of recent thrust faulting on the Moon revealed by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, Science, 2010, vol. 329, pp. 936–940.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  42. Watters, T.R., Robinson, M.S., Collins, G.C., Banks, M.E., Daud, K., Williams, N.R., and Selvans, M.M., Global thrust faulting on the Moon and the influence of tidal stresses, Geology, 2015, vol. 43, no. 10, pp. 851–854.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  43. Watters, T.R., Weber, R.C., Collins, G.C., and Johnson, C.L., Shallow lunar seismic activity and the current stress state of the Moon, Proc. XLVIII Lunar and Planetary Science Conf., Houston, TX: Lunar Planet. Inst., 2017, no. 2569.

  44. Wilhelms, D., Geologic History of the Moon: USGS Special Paper 1348, Washington, DC: US Gov. Publ. Off., 1987.

  45. Wood, J.A., Dickey, J.S., Marvin, U.B., and Powell, B.N., Lunar anorthosites and a geophysical model of the moon, Proc. the Apollo 11 Lunar Science Conf., Houston, TX, 1970, vol. 1, pp. 965–988.

  46. Xiao, Z., Zeng, Z., Ding, N., and Molaro, J., Mass wasting features on the Moon—How active is the lunar surface? Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 2013, vol. 376, pp. 1–11.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  47. Xiao, Z., Huang Q., Zeng, Z., and Xiao, L., Small graben in the southeastern ejecta blanket of the lunar Copernicus crater: implications for recent shallow igneous intrusion on the Moon, Icarus, 2017, vol. 298, pp. 89–97.

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  48. Zhao, J.N., Huang, J., Qiao, L., Xiao, Z.Y., Huang, Q., Wang, J., He, Q., and Xiao, L., Geologic characteristics of the Chang’E-3 exploration region, Sci. China: Phys., Mech. Astron., 2014, vol. 57, pp. 569–576.

    ADS  Google Scholar 

Download references

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors are grateful to B.A. Ivanov and H. Hiesinger for helpful discussions and assistance in completing this study.

The work of A.T. Basilevsky, S.S. Krasilnikov, and N.A. Kozlova is supported by the grant of the Russian Science Foundation no. 17-17-01149.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Vernadsky Institute of Geochemistry and Analytical Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

    A. T. Basilevsky, S. S. Krasilnikov & N. A. Kozlova

  2. Planetary Sciences and Remote Sensing, Institute of Geological Sciences, Freie Universitaet Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    G. G. Michael

  3. Moscow State University of Geodesy and Cartography (MIIGAiK), Moscow, Russia

    N. A. Kozlova

Authors
  1. A. T. Basilevsky
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. G. G. Michael
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. S. S. Krasilnikov
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. N. A. Kozlova
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to A. T. Basilevsky.

Additional information

Translated by M. Chubarova

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Basilevsky, A.T., Michael, G.G., Krasilnikov, S.S. et al. The Destruction of Small Lunar Craters. Sol Syst Res 54, 361–371 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0038094620040036

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S0038094620040036

Keywords:

Search

Navigation