Lunar Day Four

Abstract

We begin our binocular and small telescope explorations tonight by looking near the center of the lunar terminator to identify and take a closer look at Mare Fecunditatis (Fig. 5.1). Its expanse covers 1,463 km in diameter. The combined area of this mare is equal in size to the Great Sandy Desert in Australia - and almost as vacant in interior features. It is home to glasses, pyroxenes, feldspars, oxides, olivines, troilite, and metals in its lunar soil, which is called regolith. Studies show the basaltic flow inside of the Fecunditatis basin perhaps occurred all at once, making its chemical composition different from other maria. The lower titanium content means it is between 3.1 and 3.6 billion years old.