Microwave brightness temperature of cratered lunar surface and inversions of the physical temperature profile and thickness of regolith layer

Abstract

[1] Based on the multichannel brightness temperature observations of Chinese Chang'E-1 lunar satellite, inversions of the physical temperature profile of the lunar regolith medium and its layer thickness are discussed. The correspondence of the brightness temperature distribution to the lunar topography is demonstrated and discussed, especially around lunar polar regions under poor solar illumination. As examples, in two areas, along the lunar equator and along the line of longitude 150°W, the physical temperature profile of regolith layer and its thickness are inverted using a three-layer model of thermal radiative transfer. The results which are based on some Apollo measurements are compared with an empirical formulation of the physical temperature as a function of latitude.Citation: Gong, X., and Y.-Q. Jin (2012), Microwave brightness temperature of cratered lunar surface and inversions of the physical temperature profile and thickness of regolith layer, Radio Sci., 47, RS1012,

A tale of two poles: Toward understanding the presence, distribution, and origin of volatiles at the polar regions of the Moon and Mercury

“…Such species were found in the first in situ measurements of lunar south pole material (section 2.3.5). The Chang'E‐1 mission carried a four‐channel microwave radiometer that obtained subsurface temperature measurements in the polar regions that are complementary to the Diviner measurements [ Gong and Jin , ].…”