Spur is a feature on Earth's
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
, a crater in the
Hadley–Apennine
Hadley–Apennine is a region on the near side of Earth's Moon that served as the landing site for the American Apollo 15 mission, the fourth manned landing on the Moon and the first of the " J-missions", in July 1971. The site is located on the ...
region. Astronauts
David Scott
David Randolph Scott (born June 6, 1932) is an American retired test pilot and NASA astronaut who was the seventh person to walk on the Moon. Selected as part of the third group of astronauts in 1963, Scott flew to space three times and c ...
and
James Irwin
James Benson Irwin (March 17, 1930 – August 8, 1991) was an American astronaut, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, and a United States Air Force pilot. He served as Apollo Lunar Module pilot for Apollo 15, the fourth human lunar landi ...
visited it in 1971, on the
Apollo 15
Apollo 15 (July 26August 7, 1971) was the ninth crewed mission in the United States' Apollo program and the fourth to Moon landing, land on the Moon. It was the first List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, J mission, with a ...
mission, during
EVA
Eva or EVA may refer to:
* Eva (name), a feminine given name
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters
* Eva (Dynamite Entertainment), a comic book character by Dynamite Entertainment
* Eva (''Devil May Cry''), Dante's mother in t ...
2. Spur was designated Geology Station 7.
Spur is located on the north slope of
Mons Hadley Delta, about 200 m above the plain to the north. It is east of the much larger
St. George crater, and about 5 km south of the Apollo 15 landing site itself.
The astronauts found the "
Genesis Rock
The Genesis Rock (sample 15415) is a sample of Moon rock retrieved by Apollo 15 astronauts James Irwin and David Scott in 1971 during the second lunar EVA, at Spur crater. With a mass of , it is currently stored at the Lunar Sample Laborato ...
", sample 15415, at Spur. The sample contains a large clast of
anorthosite
Anorthosite () is a phaneritic, intrusive igneous rock characterized by its composition: mostly plagioclase feldspar (90–100%), with a minimal mafic component (0–10%). Pyroxene, ilmenite, magnetite, and olivine are the mafic minerals most ...
, and Dave Scott said "Guess what we just found! I think we found what we came for" as he examined the sample. They also found samples 15445 and 15455, so-called black and white
breccia
Breccia () is a rock composed of large angular broken fragments of minerals or rocks cemented together by a fine-grained matrix.
The word has its origins in the Italian language, in which it means "rubble". A breccia may have a variety of di ...
s, which are thought to be impact melt breccia resulting from the
Imbrium basin
Mare Imbrium (Latin ''imbrium'', the "Sea of Showers" or "Sea of Rains", "Sea of Tears") is a vast lunar mare, lava plain within the Imbrium Basin on the Moon and is one of the larger craters in the Solar System. The Imbrium Basin formed fro ...
impact event.
[To a Rocky Moon: A Geologist's History of Lunar Exploration. Don E. Wilhelms, University of Arizona Press (1993), p. 276. ]
The crater was named by the astronauts, and the name was formally adopted by the
IAU
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...
in 1973.
[
]
Gallery
File:AS15-90-12181 Spur crater annotated.jpg, View of Spur from station 6A, facing northwest
Image:Spur crater AS15-90-12219-12222.jpg, Spur crater in background, with astronaut David Scott
David Randolph Scott (born June 6, 1932) is an American retired test pilot and NASA astronaut who was the seventh person to walk on the Moon. Selected as part of the third group of astronauts in 1963, Scott flew to space three times and c ...
at left next to rover
Rover may refer to:
People
* Constance Rover (1910–2005), English historian
* Jolanda de Rover (born 1963), Dutch swimmer
* Rover Thomas (c. 1920–1998), Indigenous Australian artist
Places
* Rover, Arkansas, US
* Rover, Missouri, US
...
. The breccia boulder is at right in the distance.
Image:Spur crater boulder AS15-86-11689.jpg, Boulder of impact melt breccia photographed and sampled at Spur crater. Sample 15445 is believed to be a fragment of the boulder.
Image:Genesis rock in situ AS15-90-12227.jpg, Genesis Rock
The Genesis Rock (sample 15415) is a sample of Moon rock retrieved by Apollo 15 astronauts James Irwin and David Scott in 1971 during the second lunar EVA, at Spur crater. With a mass of , it is currently stored at the Lunar Sample Laborato ...
''in situ'' on the lunar surface prior to sampling (left of the gnomon, which was used for scale in the photos)
File:A15 PSR Fig 5-98 Planimetric map Station 7.jpg, Planimetric map of Station 7. X indicates sample locations, 5-digit numbers are LRL sample numbers, rectangle is lunar rover
A lunar rover or Moon rover is a space exploration vehicle designed to move across the surface of the Moon. The Apollo Program's Lunar Roving Vehicle was driven on the Moon by members of three American crews, Apollo 15, 16, and 17. Other rov ...
(dot indicates TV camera), black spots are large rocks, dashed lines are crater rims or other topographic features, and triangles are panorama stations.
Samples
The following samples were collected from Spur crater (Station 7), as listed in Table 5-II of the ''Apollo 15 Preliminary Science Report''.[Apollo 15 Preliminary Science Report]
1972, NASA SP-289, Scientific and Technical Information Office, NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION, Washington, D.C. Sample type, lithology, and description are from Table 5-IV of the same volume.
External links
Apollo 15 Traverses
Lunar Photomap 41B4S4(25)
References
{{reflist
Impact craters on the Moon