What is the Fra Mauro formation and where is it located on the Moon?
The Fra Mauro formation covers large portions of the lunar surface around Mare Imbrium. It features relatively low ridges and hills with undulating valleys between them.
Questions about Fra Mauro formation
Short answers, pulled from the story.
When did the Apollo 14 mission land at the Fra Mauro formation?
The American Apollo 14 mission landed at the Fra Mauro formation in 1971. Mission planners re-targeted this site after the aborted Apollo 13 mission to recover samples from the area.
Who named the Fra Mauro formation and what is its origin?
The Fra Mauro formation takes its name from an 80-kilometer-diameter crater within it. This crater and the surrounding formation are named after a 15th-century Italian monk and mapmaker of the same name.
How old is the impact that formed the Imbrium basin according to Fra Mauro samples?
Samples obtained during the Apollo 14 mission suggest that the impact which formed the Imbrium basin is no older than 4.25 billion years. Analysis indicates the landing site is not floored by volcanic rocks or basalts.
What specific geological materials were recovered from the Cone crater near the Fra Mauro landing site?
Most samples returned from the Moon from Fra Mauro are classified as breccias from the vicinity of Cone crater. Five major geologic constituents include regolith breccias, fragmental breccias, igneous lithologies, granulitic lithologies, and impact-melt lithologies.