Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Lunar Interior Magnetic Sounding • Unanswered questions about the lunar interior – – • • • • • • Did the Moon form from a collision between a Mars size object and the Earth? What was the impactor size? How much of the lunar material came from the Earth and how much came from the impactor? How deep and variable (in composition and depth) was the lunar magma ocean? Does the Moon have a core? What is its size? Electromagnetic induction studies from Apollo era surface and spacecraft magnetometers support the lunar magma ocean hypothesis but are ambiguous because of low signal/noise ratio. Data from Lunar Prospector (see Figure 2, right, Hood et al. 1999, GRL) is supportive of a lunar core (radius ~ 400 km) but the results are marginal again because of the low signal/noise ratio of the data. The unique two point simultaneous measurements from Artemis will allow us to separate the external (inducing field) and internal (the induction response) fields at a wide range of frequencies, uniquely and accurately, resulting in a much higher signal/noise ratio. The shorter periods (minute to tens of minutes) will provide information on the crust and upper mantle of the moon, helping us determine the location of the magma ocean boundary. The longer periods (several hours) will provide information on the size and conductivity of the lunar core (see Figure 1, right). Only night side data will be used to minimize the compressional effect of the solar wind on the induction field. THM+ART Senior Review 1 1 Hood et al. 1999, GRL Hood et al. 1999 June 13, 2008