Research on Microwave Emission Features of Mare Orientale Using CELMS Data

Abstract

As Mare Orientale is the youngest and best preserved multiring impact basin on the Moon, it is of essential importance to study its composition and structure for clues to the processes and histories of older, more degraded features. In this paper, the (FeO+TiO2) abundance derived from Clementine UV-VIS data and the CELMS data from Chang’e-2 satellite are employed to study the Microwave Emission features of the Mare Orientale. The results indicate that the regions with high CELMS data and high brightness temperature difference agree well with high (FeO+TiO2) abundance both on noon and on midnight. However, the change of the area with high CELMS data and high brightness temperature difference with the frequency indicates that the composition of the lunar regolith is varied with depth. The (FeO+TiO2) abundance in Maunder Crater is low, whereas the CELMS data and the brightness temperature differences in the low frequencies and the high frequencies show distinctly different features, which indicates that the composition of the lunar regolith here in the upper layer and the lower layer may be different. The abnormal microwave emission apparently exists in the regions (10°S /106°W), (5°S /104°W) and (13°S /103°W) in highland with low (FeO+TiO2) abundance, which is likely related to the temperature gradient of the deep regolith.. The microwave emission features in these areas are of special significance to study the evolution of the Mare Orientale.

Keywords

Mare Orientale / microwave emission / CELMS data