Remote compositional analyses of space-weathered lunar maria
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Abstract
Visible-to-shortwave infrared (VSWIR) reflectance spectroscopy has revolutionized our understanding of planetary surface compositions. However, space-weathering processes on airless bodies complicate quantitative compositional analyses. Here, we present a framework to isolate the signatures of space weathering in VSWIR spectra of lunar maria by leveraging radiative transfer modeling under the assumptions that (i) a space-weathered target can be expressed as a mixture of fresh and fully space-weathered components and (ii) remaining signatures can be modeled by including agglutinates as an end-member component. We first validate this approach against laboratory spectra of space-weathered Apollo mare soils of known mineral compositions using a probabilistic Markov Chain Monte Carlo implementation of the Hapke radiative transfer model. Second, we illustrate how this approach can be applied to orbital Moon Mineralogy Mapper data. The proposed space-weathering correction workflow for lunar maria could be expanded to other lunar lithologies and applied to existing and future data sets.
Suggested Citation
Jung, J., Lapotre, M.G., Milliken, R.E., Minson, S.E., 2026, Remote compositional analyses of space-weathered lunar maria: Planetary Science Journal, v. 7, no. 1, 18, 13 p., https://doi.org/10.3847/PSJ/ae2b57.
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Remote compositional analyses of space-weathered lunar maria |
| Series title | Planetary Science Journal |
| DOI | 10.3847/PSJ/ae2b57 |
| Volume | 7 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication Date | January 22, 2026 |
| Year Published | 2026 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | IOP Science |
| Contributing office(s) | Earthquake Science Center |
| Description | 18, 13 p. |