TOPOGRAPHY AND GEODESY OF THE MOON FROM THE LUNAR ORBITER LASER ALTIMETER (LOLA)

The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA), an instrument on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, has collected over 2 billion measurements of elevation that collectively constitute the highest resolution global model of lunar topography yet produced. These altimetric observations have been used to improve the lunar geodetic grid to ~1 m radial and ~50 m spatial accuracy with respect to the Moon’s center of mass. LOLA has also provided the highest resolution global maps yet produced of slopes, roughness and the 1064-nm reflectance of the lunar surface. Digital elevation models of the lunar polar regions have a spatial resolution of 25 m within 50 km of each pole; the models allow precise characterization of present and past illumination conditions. The current LOLA global topography model has a spatial resolution of ~1 km at the equator and improves with increasing north and south latitude. The data are appropriate for investigation of geological processes that have shaped the lunar surface, including impact cratering, volcanism and tectonics, and examples of each of these will be discussed.