Shackleton (crater)

Shackleton is an impact crater that lies at the lunar south pole. The peaks along the crater's rim are exposed to almost continual sunlight, while the interior is perpetually in shadow. The low-temperature interior of this crater functions as a cold trap that may capture and freeze volatiles shed during comet impacts on the Moon. Measurements by the Lunar Prospector spacecraft showed higher than normal amounts of hydrogen within the crater, which may indicate the presence of water ice. The crater is named after Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton.

Shackleton

South lunar pole as imaged by the Diviner instrument on the NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Shackleton is at bottom center.
Coordinates	89°40′S 129°47′E / 89.67°S 129.78°E / -89.67; 129.78^[1]
Diameter	21.0 km^[2]
Depth	4.2 km^[2]
Colongitude	0° at sunrise
Eponym	Ernest Shackleton

Description

 

Mosaic of the Shackleton Crater created by LROC (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) and ShadowCam

The rotational axis of the Moon passes through Shackleton, near the rim. The crater is 21 km (13 miles) in diameter and 4.2 km (2.6 miles) deep.^[2] From the Earth, it is viewed edge-on in a region of rough, cratered terrain. It is located within the South Pole–Aitken basin on a massif.^[3] The rim is slightly raised about the surrounding surface and it has an outer rampart that has been only lightly impacted. No significant craters intersect the rim, and it is sloped about 1.5° toward the direction 50–90° from the Earth.^[2][4] The age of the crater is about 3.6 billion years and it has been in the proximity of the south lunar pole for at least the last two billion years.^[3]

Because the orbit of the Moon is tilted only 1.5° from the ecliptic,^[5] the interior of this crater lies in perpetual darkness. Estimates of the area in permanent shadow were obtained from Earth-based radar studies.^[6] Peaks along the rim of the crater are almost continually illuminated by sunlight, spending about 80–90% of each lunar orbit exposed to the Sun.^[7] Continuously illuminated mountains have been termed peaks of eternal light and have been predicted to exist since the early nineteenth century.

The shadowed portion of the crater was imaged with the Terrain Camera of the Japanese SELENE spacecraft using the illumination of sunlight reflected off the rim. The interior of the crater consists of a symmetrical 30° slope that leads down to a 6.6 km (4.1 miles) diameter floor. The handful of craters along the interior span no more than a few hundred meters. The bottom is covered by an uneven mound-like feature that is 300 to 400 m (980–1,310 ft) thick. The central peak is about 200 m (660 ft) in height.^[2][8]

The continuous shadows in the south polar craters cause the floors of these formations to maintain a temperature that never exceeds about 100 K (−173 °C; −280 °F). For Shackleton, the average temperature was determined to be about 90 K (−183 °C; −298 °F), reaching 88 K at the crater floor. Under these conditions, the estimated rate of loss from any ice in the interior would be 10⁻²⁶ to 10⁻²⁷ m/s. Any water vapor that arrives here following a cometary impact on the Moon would lie permanently frozen on or below the surface. However, the surface albedo of the crater floor matches the lunar far-side, suggesting that there is no exposed surface ice.^[2][9]

This crater was named after Ernest Shackleton, an Anglo-Irish explorer of Antarctica from 1901 until his death in 1922. The name was officially adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1994.^[10] Nearby craters of note include Shoemaker, Haworth, de Gerlache, Sverdrup, Slater, and Faustini. Somewhat farther away, on the eastern hemisphere of the lunar near side, are the larger craters Amundsen and Scott, named after two other early explorers of the Antarctic continent.^[11]

Exploration

 

Shackleton as imaged by Clementine

From the perspective of the Earth, this crater lies along the southern limb of the Moon, making observation difficult. Detailed mapping of the polar regions and farside of the Moon did not occur until the advent of orbiting spacecraft. Shackleton lies entirely within the rim of the immense South Pole-Aitken basin, which is one of the largest known impact formations in the Solar System. This basin is over 12 kilometers deep, and an exploration of its properties could provide useful information about the lunar interior.^[12]

A neutron spectrometer on board the Lunar Prospector spacecraft detected enhanced concentrations of hydrogen close to the northern and southern lunar poles, including the crater Shackleton.^[13] At the end of this mission in July 1999, the spacecraft was crashed into the nearby crater Shoemaker in the hope of detecting from Earth-based telescopes an impact-generated plume containing water vapor. The impact event did not produce any detectable water vapor, and this may be an indication that the hydrogen is not in the form of hydrated minerals, or that the impact site did not contain any ice.^[14] Alternatively, it is possible that the crash did not excavate deeply enough into the regolith to liberate significant quantities of water vapor.

From Earth-based radar and spacecraft images of the crater edge, Shackleton appears to be relatively intact; much like a young crater that has not been significantly eroded from subsequent impacts. This may mean that the inner sides are relatively steep, which may make traversing the sides relatively difficult for a robotic vehicle.^[15] In addition, it is possible that the interior floor might not have collected a significant quantity of volatiles since its formation. However other craters in the vicinity are considerably older, and may contain significant deposits of hydrogen, possibly in the form of water ice. (See Shoemaker (lunar crater), for example.)

Radar studies preceding and following the Lunar Prospector mission demonstrate that the inner walls of Shackleton are similar in reflective characteristics to those of some sunlit craters. In particular, the surroundings appear to contain a significant number of blocks in its ejecta blanket, suggesting that its radar properties are a result of surface roughness, and not ice deposits, as was previously suggested from a radar experiment involving the Clementine mission.^[16] This interpretation, however, is not universally agreed upon within the scientific community.^[17] Radar images of the crater at a wavelength of 13 cm show no evidence for water ice deposits.^[18]

Optical imaging inside the crater was done for the first time by the Japanese lunar orbiter spacecraft Kaguya in 2007. It did not have any evidence of significant amount of water ice, down to the image resolution of 10 m per pixel.^[19][20]

On November 15, 2008, a 34-kg probe made a hard landing near the crater.^[21] The Moon Impact Probe (MIP) was launched from the Indian Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft and reached the surface 25 minutes later. The probe carried a radar altimeter, video imaging system, and a mass spectrometer, which will be used to search for water.^{[citation needed]}

Potential uses

 

Shackleton as imaged by LRO

 

Shackleton Crater as imaged by Earth-based radar

Some sites along Shackleton's rim receive almost constant illumination. At these locales sunlight is almost always available for conversion into electricity using solar panels, potentially making them good locations for future Moon landings.^[22] The temperature at this site is also more favorable than at more equatorial latitudes as it does not experience the daily temperature extremes of 100 °C when the Sun is overhead, to as low as −150 °C during the lunar night.

While scientific experiments performed by Clementine and Lunar Prospector could indicate the presence of water in the polar craters, the current evidence is far from definitive. There are doubts among scientists as to whether or not the hydrogen is in the form of ice, as well as to the concentration of this "ore" with depth below the surface. Resolution of this issue will require future missions to the Moon. The potential presence of water suggests that the crater floor could be "mined" for deposits of hydrogen in water form, a commodity that is expensive to deliver directly from the Earth.

This crater has also been proposed as a future site for a large infrared telescope.^[23] The low temperature of the crater floor makes it ideal for infrared observations, and solar cells placed along the rim could provide near-continuous power to the observatory. About 120 kilometers from the crater lies the 5-km tall Malapert Mountain, a peak that is perpetually visible from the Earth, and which could serve as a radio relay station when suitably equipped.^[24]

In 2006, NASA named the rim of Shackleton as a potential candidate for its lunar outpost, originally slated to be up and running by 2020 and continuously staffed by a crew by 2024. The location would promote self-sustainability for lunar residents, as perpetual sunlight on the south pole would provide energy for solar panels. Furthermore, the shadowed polar regions are believed to contain the frozen water necessary for human consumption and could also be harvested for fuel manufacture.^[25] The crater is a major landing site candidate for the Artemis program and could be explored by a crew starting in 2026^[26] with a possible first lunar outpost in 2028.^[27]

In popular culture

Shackleton plays prominently in the alternate history television drama series For All Mankind. In the program, astronauts in a fictionalized version of the Apollo 15 mission land near Shackleton in 1971 and discover water ice in the crater walls. Later, the United States and the Soviet Union establish competing, crewed bases next to the crater to take advantage of the ice for drinking, oxygen and other uses.

Shackleton was also the site of the first lunar base in Mass Effect. It was chosen as a location due to its hypothesised water ice deposits.

Shackleton was the location for the site of the Chinese National Space Agency moonbase Guang Han Gong-1 in the fictional podcast series Transmissions from Colony One.

Pusher (musician), in his album published in late September 2023 named "King of the Moon", heavily references a location called "Shackleton Heights", where his album's back-story takes place.

See also

•  Solar System portal

• Colonization of the Moon
• Lunar ice
• Lunar south pole

References

1. "Shackleton". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS. Retrieved 2023-12-12.
2. Haruyama, Junichi; Ohtake, M.; Matsunaga, T.; Morota, T.; Honda, C.; Yokota, Y.; Pieters, C. M.; Hara, S.; et al. (November 7, 2008). "Lack of Exposed Ice Inside Lunar South Pole Shackleton Crater". Science. 322 (5903): 938–939. Bibcode:2008Sci...322..938H. doi:10.1126/science.1164020. PMID 18948501. S2CID 20749838.
3. Spudis, Paul D.; Bussey, Ben; Plescia, Jeffrey; Josset, Jean-Luc; Beauvivre, Stéphane (2008). "Geology of Shackleton Crater and the south pole of the Moon" (PDF). Geophysical Research Letters. 35 (14): L14201. Bibcode:2008GeoRL..3514201S. doi:10.1029/2008GL034468. S2CID 73675688. Retrieved 2009-09-24.
4. "SMART-1 view of Shackleton at lunar South Pole". ESA/SMART-1. January 13, 2006. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
5. Quoi, Charles Q.; Dobrijevic, Daisy (May 23, 2023). . Space.com. Archived from the original on 2023-09-13. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
6. Margot, J. L.; Campbell, D. B.; Jurgens, R. F.; Slade, M. A. (1999). "Topography of the Lunar Poles from Radar Interferometry: A Survey of Cold Trap Locations". Science. 284 (5420): 1658–1660. Bibcode:1999Sci...284.1658M. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.485.312. doi:10.1126/science.284.5420.1658. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 10356393.
7. Spudis, P. D.; et al. (March 1995). "Physical Environment of the Lunar South Pole from Clementine data: Implications for Future Exploration of the Moon". Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. Vol. 26. pp. 1339–1340. Bibcode:1995LPI....26.1339S.
8. Haruyama, Junichi (2007). . JAXA. Archived from the original on 2013-04-10. Retrieved 2010-01-03.
9. Ingersoll, A. P.; Svitek, T.; Murray, B. C. (1992). "Stability of polar frosts in spherical bowl-shaped craters on the moon, Mercury, and Mars". Icarus. 100 (1): 40–47. Bibcode:1992Icar..100...40I. doi:10.1016/0019-1035(92)90016-Z. ISSN 0019-1035.
10. Blue, Jennifer (July 25, 2007). "Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature". USGS. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
11. Bussey, Ben; Spudis, Paul (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. London: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
12. Pieters, C. M.; et al. (March 17–21, 2003). "Science Options for Sampling South Pole-Aitken Basin" (PDF). 34th Annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. League City, Texas. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
13. Feldman, W. C.; Maurice, S; Binder, AB; Barraclough, BL; Elphic, RC; Lawrence, DJ (1998). "Fluxes of Fast and Epithermal Neutrons from Lunar Prospector: Evidence for Water Ice at the Lunar Poles". Science. 281 (5382): 1496–1500. Bibcode:1998Sci...281.1496F. doi:10.1126/science.281.5382.1496. PMID 9727973.
14. Isbell, D.; Morse, D.; Rische, B. (October 13, 1999). . Science@NASA. Archived from the original on March 4, 2000. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
15. Zakrajsek, J. J.; et al. (March 2005). . NASA. Archived from the original on 2009-04-05. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
16. Campbell, B. A.; Campbell, D. B. (2006). "Regolith properties in the south polar region of the Moon from 70-cm radar polarimetry". Icarus. 180 (1): 1–7. Bibcode:2006Icar..180....1C. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2005.08.018.
17. Spudis, Paul (2006). "Ice on the Moon".
18. Campbell, Donald B.; Campbell, Bruce A.; Carter, Lynn M.; Margot, Jean-Luc; Stacy, Nicholas J. S. (2006-10-19). "No evidence for thick deposits of ice at the lunar south pole". Nature. 443 (7113): 835–837. Bibcode:2006Natur.443..835C. doi:10.1038/nature05167. PMID 17051213. S2CID 2346946.
19. Haruyama, Junichi; Ohtake, M.; Matsunaga, T.; Morota, T.; Honda, C.; Yokota, Y.; Pieters, C. M.; Hara, S.; et al. (2008-10-23). "Lack of Exposed Ice Inside Lunar South Pole Shackleton Crater". Science. 322 (5903): 938–939. Bibcode:2008Sci...322..938H. doi:10.1126/science.1164020. PMID 18948501. S2CID 20749838.
20. "月周回衛星「かぐや（SELENE）」搭載の地形カメラによる南極シャックルトンクレータ内の永久影領域の水氷存在に関する論文のサイエンスへの掲載について" (Press release) (in Japanese). JAXA. October 24, 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-13.
21. McDowell, Jonathan (2008-11-15). . Jonathan's Space Report. Archived from the original on 2009-08-26. Retrieved 2008-11-16.
22. Bussey, D. B. J.; Robinson, M. S.; Spudis, P. D. (March 15–19, 2004). "Ideal Landing Sites near the Lunar Poles". 35th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. League City, Texas. Bibcode:2004LPI....35.1582F.
23. Bussey, D. B. J.; Robinson, M. S.; Spudis, P. D. (October 10–19, 2002). "Design and Construction of a Lunar South Pole Infrared Telescope (LSPIRT)". 34th COSPAR Scientific Assembly, The Second World Space Congress. Houston, Texas. Bibcode:2002cosp...34E.113V.
24. Sharpe, Burton L.; Schrunk, David G. "Malapert Mountain Revisited". Proceedings of Space 2002: The Eighth International Conference And Exposition On Engineering, Construction, Operations, And Business In Space. pp. 129–135. Bibcode:2002spro.conf..129S.
25. Kluger, Jeffry (December 5, 2006). . CNN. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
26. "NASA delays Artemis 2 and 3 missions". 9 January 2024.
27. Dunbar, Brian (2019-04-15). "Moon's South Pole in NASA's Landing Sites". NASA. Retrieved 2019-11-14.

External links

• Shackleton Crater Topography Visualization from NASA LRO
• "Best site for Moonbase revealed". BBC News. March 16, 1999. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
• Morring, F. Jr. (April 11, 2006). "NASA Sending Piggyback Impactors With Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter". Aviation Week. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
• Foing, Bernard H.; Josset, Jean-Luc (October 20, 2006). "Shackleton crater: SMART-1's search for light, shadow and ice at lunar South Pole". ESA/SMART-1. Retrieved 2012-03-15.
• Wood, Chuck (November 14, 2007). "A View of Our Future". Lunar Photo of the Day. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
• Koschny, Detlef; Grieger, Björn. . Europlanet Research Infrastructure. Archived from the original on 2011-09-29. Retrieved 2009-09-24.
• . UCLA. August 2009. Archived from the original on August 2, 2010. Retrieved March 3, 2010.