Lunar mare
Also known as: maria · lunar maria · mare
- 1Lunar maria are expansive, dark, basaltic plains located on the Moon.
- 2They were formed by the flow of lava into ancient impact basins.
- 3Their iron-rich composition results in lower reflectivity compared to lunar highlands.
- 4Maria cover approximately 16% of the total lunar surface.
- 5The majority of maria are concentrated on the side of the Moon visible from Earth.
- 6Maria on the far side of the Moon are significantly smaller and restricted to large craters.
Lunar maria are large, dark, basaltic plains on Earth's Moon, formed by lava flowing into ancient impact basins.
Connections1
geological classification of the feature
Mare Tranquillitatis is a prime example of a lunar mare, which are vast, dark, basaltic plains formed by ancient volcanic eruptions on the Moon.
Lunar maria are large, dark, basaltic plains on Earth's Moon, formed by lava flowing into ancient impact basins. They are less reflective than the "highlands" as a result of their iron-rich composition, and hence appear dark to the naked eye. The maria cover about 16% of the lunar surface, mostly on the side visible from Earth. The few maria on the far side are much smaller, residing mostly in very large craters.
Crater Copernicus on lunar terminatorWikimedia Commons; Thomas Bresson; Lune (Copernicus); CC BY 2.0; Wikimedia Commons: Category:Lunar seasCopernic sur la Lune / Copernicus on the MoonWikimedia Commons; Thomas Bresson; http://openphoto.net/gallery/image.html?image_id=18084; CC BY 2.5; Wikimedia Commons: Category:Lunar seasen:Mare Marginis lies on the very edge of the lunar nearside. It differs from most of the nearside maria. It has an irregular outline, and it appears to be fairly thin. Note the small circular and elongated features in the mare plains. These probably mark impact craters buried by less than 1000 - 1700 feet of lava. Fu...Wikimedia Commons; NASA; http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov/science/atlas/mare/mmarginis.htm; Public domain; Wikimedia Commons; Wikidata P18 (image) 72 words