An irregular mare patch also known as an IMP, is a smooth, rounded, slightly mounded area, generally about 500 meters wide, occurring in the lunar maria.[1]
An irregular mare patch in the Mare Tranquillitatis. Note that the image may appear depth inverted; the large round object in the upper right corner is a crater and the large round object in the center is a dome.Irregular mare patch crossing Rima Sosigenes in western Mare Tranquillitatis.
Due to their small size, and corresponding difficulty of observational astronomy from Earth, the first irregular mare patch discovered, Ina, was only found in 1971 after analysis of photographs taken by Apollo 15.[2] More were discovered by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which was launched in 2009 and found about 70 more.
Origin
The origin of the irregular mare patches is uncertain. Crater counts, which can give an indication of the age of an area by the number of craters upon it, indicate that these regions can be as young as a few tens of millions of years old. It has been hypothesized by the LRO team that they are small volcanic lava flows, due to their spectroscopic similarity to other lava flows.[3] However, other analysts dispute this, noting that there are many separate patches, instead of one large patch. This would require numerous small-scale eruptions. There is also no indication of flowing, as there is in lava in other eruptions on the Moon. Even more important, the hypothesis of volcanic action is at odds with the current theory of the Moon's geology, which states that the moon should have cooled and solidified by about 1 billion years ago, precluding further geological action.[1]
Geological implications
Understanding irregular mare patches may require new geological theories to be properly explained.[3] According to the current scientific theories, the Moon's small size means that its mantle should have fully solidified by about 1 billion years ago, which is backed up by seismic data. This would prevent any further geological action by the Moon's interior.[4] A recent (in geological terms) eruption would indicate that the Moon has cooled much more slowly than thought, possibly due to heat released from radioactive decay of radioisotopes in the Moon.[5]
John Moore: Irregular Mare Patches on the Moon (2019).
References
^ abWood, Charles. "Strange Little IMPs." Sky and Telescope, February 2015 issue.
^Whitaker, E.A. (1972). "An unusual mare feature". (PDF). pp. 25-84–25-85. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-11-02. Retrieved 2015-01-03.
^ abBrown, Dwayne (12 October 2014). "Nasa mission finds widespread evidence of young lunar volcanism". nasa.gov. www.nasa.gov. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
^Freudenrich, Craig (6 March 2008). "Geologic History of the Moon". science.howstuffworks.com/. howstuffworks.com. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
^Robinson, Mark (12 October 2014). . lroc.sese.asu.edu/posts/. Arizona State University. Archived from the original on 28 October 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
August 21, 2023
irregular, mare, patch, irregular, mare, patch, also, known, smooth, rounded, slightly, mounded, area, generally, about, meters, wide, occurring, lunar, maria, irregular, mare, patch, mare, tranquillitatis, note, that, image, appear, depth, inverted, large, ro. An irregular mare patch also known as an IMP is a smooth rounded slightly mounded area generally about 500 meters wide occurring in the lunar maria 1 An irregular mare patch in the Mare Tranquillitatis Note that the image may appear depth inverted the large round object in the upper right corner is a crater and the large round object in the center is a dome Irregular mare patch crossing Rima Sosigenes in western Mare Tranquillitatis Contents 1 Discovery 2 Origin 3 Geological implications 4 See also 5 Bibliography 6 ReferencesDiscovery EditDue to their small size and corresponding difficulty of observational astronomy from Earth the first irregular mare patch discovered Ina was only found in 1971 after analysis of photographs taken by Apollo 15 2 More were discovered by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter which was launched in 2009 and found about 70 more Origin EditThe origin of the irregular mare patches is uncertain Crater counts which can give an indication of the age of an area by the number of craters upon it indicate that these regions can be as young as a few tens of millions of years old It has been hypothesized by the LRO team that they are small volcanic lava flows due to their spectroscopic similarity to other lava flows 3 However other analysts dispute this noting that there are many separate patches instead of one large patch This would require numerous small scale eruptions There is also no indication of flowing as there is in lava in other eruptions on the Moon Even more important the hypothesis of volcanic action is at odds with the current theory of the Moon s geology which states that the moon should have cooled and solidified by about 1 billion years ago precluding further geological action 1 Geological implications EditUnderstanding irregular mare patches may require new geological theories to be properly explained 3 According to the current scientific theories the Moon s small size means that its mantle should have fully solidified by about 1 billion years ago which is backed up by seismic data This would prevent any further geological action by the Moon s interior 4 A recent in geological terms eruption would indicate that the Moon has cooled much more slowly than thought possibly due to heat released from radioactive decay of radioisotopes in the Moon 5 See also EditGeology of the Moon Ina crater Lunar mare MoonBibliography EditJohn Moore Irregular Mare Patches on the Moon 2019 References Edit a b Wood Charles Strange Little IMPs Sky and Telescope February 2015 issue Whitaker E A 1972 An unusual mare feature Apollo 15 Preliminary Science Report NASA Special Publication 289 PDF pp 25 84 25 85 Archived from the original PDF on 2014 11 02 Retrieved 2015 01 03 a b Brown Dwayne 12 October 2014 Nasa mission finds widespread evidence of young lunar volcanism nasa gov www nasa gov Retrieved 3 January 2015 Freudenrich Craig 6 March 2008 Geologic History of the Moon science howstuffworks com howstuffworks com Retrieved 3 January 2015 Robinson Mark 12 October 2014 New Evidence For Young Lunar Volcanism lroc sese asu edu posts Arizona State University Archived from the original on 28 October 2014 Retrieved 4 January 2015 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Irregular mare patch amp oldid 1088759261, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
