Lunar geologic mapping : preliminary map of the southwest quadrant of lunar lq-10 ( “ marius ” ) quadrangle

Introduction: Systematic lunar mapping by the U.S. Geological Survey Astrogeology branch began in 1960 with the chief purpose of creating a stratigraphic framework for exploration during the Apollo missions [1]. After a lengthy hiatus, new topographic, compositional and gravity datasets have become available. In response, a global geologic mapping program was jointly devised and executed by NASA and the USGS [2-4]. This program subdivides the Moon into 30 quadrangles to be mapped at 1:2.5M (Fig. 1).