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Photogrammetric 3D reconstruction of Apollo 17 Station 6: From boulders to lunar rock samples integrated into virtual reality
... For example, Caravaca et al. [18] made a 3D reconstruction of the Kimberley outcrop (Gale crater, Mars) by using the photogrammetry technique (also known as Structure-from-Motion-Multi-View Stereo; SfM-MVS). The studies carried out by Pustynski and Jones [19] and Le Mouélic et al. [20] demonstrate the widespread use of digital photogrammetry in the field of planetary and space science. ...
Mineralogy 4.0 can play a significant role in the future of geological research, education, and exploration by providing a more comprehensive and interactive understanding of rocks and minerals. This paper explores the application of digital photogrammetry and augmented reality (AR) technologies as part of Mineralogy 4.0. An atlas of 3D rocks and minerals with 915 high-quality models was created to showcase the potential of photogrammetry in the mineral sciences. The repository contains a wide range of sample types, featuring transparency, metallic luster, fluorescence, or millimetric-scale crystals. The three-dimensional rocks and minerals can also be accessed on-the-go through a mobile application that was developed for Android devices. Additionally, web applications have been developed with specific three-dimensional collections as well as three-dimensional storytelling. AR technology was also integrated into the 3D repository, allowing users to superimpose virtual 3D models of rocks and minerals onto real-world surfaces through their device’s camera. Also, a digital solution with 3D holograms of rocks and minerals was effectively implemented to provide an interactive and immersive experience. The 3D datasets of rocks and minerals can play a significant role in the geoscience community’s research, developing not only in-depth knowledge of specimens but also opening new frontiers in mineral sciences, leading towards a more advanced era of mineralogy.
We propose using coupled deep learning based super-resolution restoration (SRR) and single-image digital terrain model (DTM) estimation (SDE) methods to produce subpixel-scale topography from single-view ESA Trace Gas Orbiter Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) and NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) images. We present qualitative and quantitative assessments of the resultant 2 m/pixel CaSSIS SRR DTM mosaic over the ESA and Roscosmos Rosalind Franklin ExoMars rover’s (RFEXM22) planned landing site at Oxia Planum. Quantitative evaluation shows SRR improves the effective resolution of the resultant CaSSIS DTM by a factor of 4 or more, while achieving a fairly good height accuracy measured by root mean squared error (1.876 m) and structural similarity (0.607), compared to the ultra-high-resolution HiRISE SRR DTMs at 12.5 cm/pixel. We make available, along with this paper, the resultant CaSSIS SRR image and SRR DTM mosaics, as well as HiRISE full-strip SRR images and SRR DTMs, to support landing site characterisation and future rover engineering for the RFEXM22.
Chang'E-4 was the first lunar mission to successfully land on the far side of the Moon. The stereo images collected by the panoramic camera (Pancam) mounted on the Jade Rabbit-2 rover have provided the most detailed in situ observations of the landing site along the rover traverse. This paper presents our efforts in centimeter-resolution topographic modeling and fine-scale analysis of craters and rocks at the Chang'E-4 landing site using the Pancam images. We first used an integrated photogrammetric and photoclinometric approach to generate a digital elevation model (DEM) and an orthoimage mosaic of the landing site and a 3D model of the Chang'E-4 lander itself, all with spatial resolutions of 1 cm/pixel. Craters with diameters of decimeters to meters and rocks with sizes of decimeters were then extracted and analyzed. The results indicate that Chang'E-4 landed on a terrain slope of 4° toward 72.3° southwest, with one foot sunk in the regolith 1.5 cm deeper than the other foot on the front side of the lander. Fine-scale analysis of the small craters at the Chang'E-4 landing site showed overall a similar power-law trend as large craters of hundreds of meters, but there is a clear gap between their size-frequency distributions, indicating the accumulated impact flux appears to be different for these two crater populations. The average depth-to-diameter ratio of the small craters around the landing site was 0.061, obviously less than those of craters on the kilometer scale. Fine-scale analysis of rocks revealed that the Chang'E-4 landing site has a rock abundance of 0.21%, which agrees well with previous results based on orbital data. Joint analysis of craters and rocks indicates that more rocks are located inside craters with greater depth-to-diameter ratios on such a fine scale. The 3D topographic modeling approach and fine-scale analysis of craters and rocks presented in this paper provide new insights into lunar mapping and geological study.
The Taurus-Littrow valley on the Moon was the location of intensive geologic fieldwork during three days in December 1972. In situ activities at sampling stations were systematically documented by the astronauts using a series of overlapping images taken with their Hasselblad cameras. We investigated how this Apollo image archive can be used to perform 3-D reconstructions of several boulders of interest using close-range photogrammetry. We specifically focused on seven different boulders located at Stations 2, 6, and 7, at the foot of South and North Massifs, respectively. These boulders represent samples from highland materials, which rolled down the slopes of the surrounding hills. We used the Agisoft Metashape software to compute 3-D reconstructions of these boulders, using 173 scanned images as input. We then used either a web-based platform or a game engine to render the models in virtual reality. This allowed the users to walk around the boulders and to investigate in detail their morphology, fractures, vesicles, color variations, and sampling spots, as if standing directly in front of them with the astronauts. This work suggests that many features can be reconstructed in other sites of the Apollo missions, so as other robotic landing sites. Virtual reality techniques coupled to photogrammetry is thus opening a new era of exploration, both for past and future landing sites.
We carried out an extensive cartographic analysis of the Apollo 17 landing site and determined and mapped positions of the astronauts, their equipment and lunar landmarks with accuracies of better than ±1 m in most cases. To determine coordinates in a lunar body-fixed coordinate frame we applied least-squares (2D-) network adjustments to angular measurements made in astronaut imagery (Hasselblad frames). The measured angular networks were accurately tied to control features provided by a 0.5 m/pixel, controlled Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LROC) Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) orthomosaic of the entire Taurus-Littrow Valley. Furthermore, by applying triangulation on measurements made in Hasselblad frames providing stereo views, we were able to relate individual instruments of the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiment Package (ALSEP) to specific features captured in LROC imagery and, also, to determine coordinates of astronaut equipment or other surface features not captured in the orbital images, e.g. the deployed geophones and Explosive Packages (EPs) of the Lunar Seismic Profiling Experiment (LSPE), or the Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) at major sampling stops. Our results were integrated into a new LROC NAC based Apollo 17 Traverse Map and also used to generate a series of large-scale maps of all nine traverse stations and of the ALSEP area. In addition, we provide crater measurements, profiles of the navigated traverse paths, and improved ranges of the sources and receivers of the active seismic experiment LSPE.
We used photogrammetry to study surface photographs made by the crew of the Apollo 11 Lunar Module (LM). We represent photogrammetrically determined locations of 116 from total 123 camera stations (6 additional stations were located approximately based on auxiliary data), hardware left on the surface and natural features. Our analysis improves results of earlier determinations made with rough methods. Errors of distances from the LM to the EASEP instruments have been reduced from meters in the map from the Preliminary Scientific Report to about 0.1 m. Determined locations were compared to positions of artifacts in orbital photographs made by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC); an excellent agreement was established. We identified at least 58 boulders seen both in LROC images and in EVA photographs. Distance accuracies are mostly within 3 percent. A new, more exact and detailed map of Tranquility Base was composed.
Ar-40-Ar-39 age determinations for some Apollo 16 and 17 highland rocks
are reported, and the chronology of lunar highland samples is discussed.
While basalt 75035 is found to have an age of 3.77 b.y., the argon
release patterns from two plagioclase separates of 75035 both show
high-temperature increases in apparent age to 3.85 b.y., for unknown
reasons. Two models of the chronology are examined. One model assumes
that the ages are dominated by basin-forming events; the alternative
model, in which the chronology is dominated by cratering events of
subbasin size, may be used to determine cratering as a function of time
close to 4.0 b.y. The association of the ages of the Apollo 17 massif
rocks with the Serenitatis event restricts the basin chronology within
very narrow limits, regardless of model.
Six matrix samples and four clasts from the Apollo 17 Station 6 boulder
have been analyzed by the Ar-40-Ar-39 method. All samples yielded well
defined and essentially identical ages, indicating that the impact event
which produced this well-recrystallized boulder occurred 3.96 plus or
minus 0.04 G.y. ago. The matrix samples are chemically similar but
provide a regular gradation of petrological characteristics which
correlate with a regular variation in argon systematics. The
high-temperature decrease in apparent age which is a common feature of
lunar samples is greatest for the finest grained samples, an observation
which can be understood in terms of Ar-39 recoil from K-rich phases into
the more retentive K-poor iron magnesium silicates.
The exposure ages of Apollo 17 rocks as measured by tracks and rare gases are discussed and a description is given of an investigation of a unique rock. The investigation will be an aid for the establishment of the long-term energy spectrum of solar flare heavy particles. The track record of several Apollo 17 soils is examined. It is shown that the Apollo 17 deep drill stem might make it possible to extend the energy range over which the fossil record of galactic cosmic rays can be studied. A review is provided regarding the experimental data obtained for the rates of several dynamical processes on the lunar surface.
This work represents an Apollo 12 landing site photogrammetric study based on the lunar surface imagery. A set of 303 photographs taken by the crew was used to build up a 3D scene of the landing site. The mapped area includes the Lunar Module (LM) vicinity, Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package (ALSEP) deployment site, Surveyor 3 landing site, and Surveyor Crater. The camera station map was composed, locations of artifacts on the lunar surface were accurately determined. Orientations of the LM and Surveyor 3 were found to an accuracy of about 0.5–1°. The depth of Surveyor Crater was determined to an accuracy better than 1 m. The map and coordinates are in a good agreement with image data and Digital Terrain Models (DTMs) from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO).
Lunar Digital Elevation Model (DEM) is important for lunar successful landing and exploration missions. Lunar DEMs are typically generated by photogrammetry or laser altimetry approaches. Photogrammetric methods require multiple stereo images of the region of interest and it may not be applicable in cases where stereo coverage is not available. In contrast, reflectance based shape reconstruction techniques, such as shape from shading (SfS) and shape and albedo from shading (SAfS), apply monocular images to generate DEMs with pixel-level resolution. We present a novel hierarchical SAfS method that refines a lower-resolution DEM to pixel-level resolution given a monocular image with known light source. We also estimate the corresponding pixel-wise albedo map in the process and based on that to regularize the shape reconstruction with pixel-level resolution based on the low-resolution DEM. In this study, a Lunar–Lambertian reflectance model is applied to estimate the albedo map. Experiments were carried out using monocular images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Narrow Angle Camera (LRO NAC), with spatial resolution of 0.5–1.5 m per pixel, constrained by the Selenological and Engineering Explorer and LRO Elevation Model (SLDEM), with spatial resolution of 60 m. The results indicate that local details are well recovered by the proposed algorithm with plausible albedo estimation. The low-frequency topographic consistency depends on the quality of low-resolution DEM and the resolution difference between the image and the low-resolution DEM.
Integration of Apollo 17 field observations and photographs, sample investigations, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera images, Chandrayaan-1 Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) spectra, and Miniature Radio Frequency (Mini-RF) S-band radar images provides new insights into the geology of the valley of Taurus–Littrow on the Moon. Connecting the various remote observations to sample data enables a set of new conclusions to be drawn regarding the geological evolution of the valley. Structural considerations and published and recalculated 40Ar/39Ar analyses of samples from the North Massif and the Sculptured Hills indicate that the Crisium basin formed about 3.93 Ga; the Serenitatis basin about 3.82 Ga; and the Imbrium basin no earlier than 3.82 Ga and no later than the average of 3.72 Ga for 33 age dates from samples of the valley's mare basalts. Strong evidence continues to support the conclusion of others (Lucchitta, 1972; Spudis et al., 2011; Fassett et al., 2012) that the Sculptured Hills physiographic unit consists of Imbrium ejecta. Interpretation of M3 spectral data and Apollo 17 samples indicate that rock units of the Sculptured Hills consist of a largely coherent, Mg-suite pluton. LROC NAC stereo images and Mini-RF data indicate the presence of several exposed pyroclastic fissures across the Sculptured Hills. Rim boulders at Camelot Crater constitute nearly in situ wall rocks of that crater rather than ejecta and provide an opportunity for investigations of remanent magnetic field orientation at the time of the eruption of late mare basalt lavas in the valley. Paleomagnetic field orientation information also may be obtained relative to melt-breccia contacts in North Massif boulders that suggest original horizontal orientations. LROC images indicate the existence of two temporally separate light mantle avalanche deposits. The origin, potential flow mechanisms, and geology of the youngest avalanche from the South Massif have been clarified. The existence of two distinct light mantle avalanches raises doubt about the association of either light mantle avalanche with secondary impacts related to the Tycho impact event. Alternatively, the Lee-Lincoln thrust fault appears to have triggered the second light mantle avalanche between 70 and 110 Ma. A simple structural analysis shows that this thrust fault dips 20–25° to the southwest where it crosses the North Massif and to the west where it crosses the valley floor. Mini-RF data reveal a line of reduced reflections roughly perpendicular to contours on the North Massif about 3 km to the east of the Lee-Lincoln fault. Although this line is possibly an older ancillary fault, LROC NAC stereo images indicate that it may be best explained as a pyroclastic fissure. A debris flow of dark, apparent pyroclastic ash lies below the southeast end of the potential fissure. Finally, young lunar impact glass sample 70019 has been precisely located within LROC NAC images and oriented for the first time using 60 mm (f.l.) sample documentation photographs. Sample 70019 can now be employed in lunar paleomagnetic field orientation studies.
The origin of the boulders sampled during the Apollo 17 mission to the Taurus–Littrow Valley has been debated since the completion of the mission four decades ago. No consensus has yet been reached whether the sampled boulders originated in material emplaced as a result of the Serenitatis impact (i.e., massifs), the Imbrium impact (i.e., Sculptured Hills), a combination of both impact events, or as a result of another pre- or post-Serenitatis impact event (i.e., massifs or superposed deposits on valley floor). These on-going debates demonstrate the importance of identifying the geologic context of samples collected during the Apollo missions. Using high-resolution imagery and topography data, we identify boulder tracks that connect sampled boulders with source outcrops. These observations verify astronauts' impressions that boulders originated in outcrops within massif walls and that they remain uncontaminated by nearby Sculptured Hills materials. This finding can be used with updated Ar–Ar and U–Pb ages of analyzed samples to constrain the timing and intensity of the lunar cataclysm epoch.
The purpose of the Lunar Sample Compendium will be to inform scientists,
astronauts and the public about the various lunar samples that have been
returned from the Moon. This Compendium will be organized rock by rock
in the manor of a catalog, but will not be as comprehensive, nor as
complete, as the various lunar sample catalogs that are available.
Likewise, this Compendium will not duplicate the various excellent books
and reviews on the subject of lunar samples (Cadogen 1981, Heiken et al.
1991, Papike et al. 1998, Warren 2003, Eugster 2003). However, it is
thought that an online Compendium, such as this, will prove useful to
scientists proposing to study individual lunar samples and should help
provide backup information for lunar sample displays. This Compendium
will allow easy access to the scientific literature by briefly
summarizing the significant findings of each rock along with the
documentation of where the detailed scientific data are to be found. In
general, discussion and interpretation of the results is left to the
formal reviews found in the scientific literature. An advantage of this
Compendium will be that it can be updated, expanded and corrected as
need be.
Multiview three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction is a technology that allows the creation of 3D models
of a given scenario from a series of overlapping pictures taken using consumer-grade digital cameras.
This type of 3D reconstruction is facilitated by freely available software, which does not require expertlevel
skills. This technology provides a 3D working environment, which integrates sample/field data visualization and measurement tools. In this study, we test the potential of this method for 3D
reconstruction of decimeter-scale objects of geological interest. We generated 3D models of three
different outcrops exposed in a marble quarry and two solids: a volcanic bomb and a stalagmite.
Comparison of the models obtained in this study using the presented method with those obtained using
a precise laser scanner shows that multiview 3D reconstruction yields models that present a root mean
square error/average linear dimensions between 0.11 and 0.68%. Thus this technology turns out to be
an extremely promising tool, which can be fruitfully applied in geosciences.
Photogrammetric calibration of Apollo film cameras
The evolution of crew-operated photographic equipment and the procedures for manned space-flight photographic operations are reviewed. The establishment of program requirements is described. Photographic operations are discussed, including preflight testing and inflight operations.
The reported investigation is concerned with the resolution of a number of questions related to the ancient meteoritic component in Apollo 17 boulders. Numerical taxonomic methods have been adopted to objectively group the components. Only the nonvolatile siderophile elements have been used for the classification. Efforts were made to obtain data on the metal composition of breccias analyzed for trace elements, to determine if metal homogeneity was reflected in siderophile ratios. Thirty-one samples were analyzed of which twenty-eight have significant siderophile contents. It is concluded that highland breccias are largely the product of large basin-forming impacts. Highland soils are then produced by comminution of the breccias by small local impacts and micrometeorite bombardment. The long-lived component of bulk soils considered by Baedecker et al. (1974) is thought to contain a substantial micrometeorite contribution, plus assorted debris.
Regional geologic relations are seen as suggesting that the distribution of highland landforms is not consistent with their derivation from a single impact event but is consistent with multiple events involving both distant basins and smaller, local craters. Thus the highland samples collected at the Apollo 17 landing site may not consist solely of Serenitatis basin ejecta but probably include both exotic ejecta and reworked local material. On the basis of these observations, it is suggested that the Apollo 17 highland melt breccias are not all derived from the Serenitatis basin impact; that is, the aphanitic melt rocks may be either other basin or local crater ejecta. It is thought that if the melt rocks collected at Apollo 17 are all derived from the same impact, the significant chemical and petrographic differences between the rocks may require modification of current models for impact melt petrogenesis.
The interpretation of structure from motion is examined from a computional point of view. The question addressed is how the three dimensional structure and motion of objects can be inferred from the two dimensional transformations of their projected images when no three dimensional information is conveyed by the individual projections. The following scheme is proposed: (i) divide the image into groups of four elements each; (ii) test each group for a rigid interpretation; (iii) combine the results obtained in (ii). It is shown that this scheme will correctly decompose scenes containing arbitrary rigid objects in motion, recovering their three dimensional structure and motion. The analysis is based primarily on the "structure from motion" theorem which states that the structure of four non-coplanar points is recoverable from three orthographic projections. The interpretation scheme is extended to cover perspective projections, and its psychological relevance is discussed.
Comprehensive Non-Destructive Conservation Documentation of Lunar Samples Using High-Resolution Image-Based 3D Reconstructions and X-Ray CT Data
- E H Blumenfeld
- C A Evans
- E R Oshel
- D A Liddle
- K Beaulieu
- R A Zeigler
- R D Hanna
- R A Ketcham
Blumenfeld, E. H., Evans, C. A., Oshel, E. R., Liddle, D. A., Beaulieu, K., Zeigler, R. A., Hanna, R. D., and
Ketcham, R. A., 2015. Comprehensive Non-Destructive Conservation Documentation of Lunar Samples Using
High-Resolution Image-Based 3D Reconstructions and X-Ray CT Data. 46 th Lunar and Planetary Science
Conference.
3D Virtual Astromaterials Samples Collection of NASA's Apollo Lunar and Antarctic Meteorite Samples to be an Online Database to Serve Researchers and the Public
- E H Blumenfeld
- K R Beaulieu
- A B Thomas
- C A Evans
- R A Zeigler
- E R Oshel
- D A Liddle
- K Righter
- R D Hanna
- R A Ketcham
Blumenfeld, E. H., Beaulieu, K. R., Thomas, A. B., Evans, C. A., Zeigler, R. A., Oshel, E. R., Liddle, D. A.,
Righter, K., Hanna, R. D., and Ketcham, R. A., 2019. 3D Virtual Astromaterials Samples Collection of NASA's
Apollo Lunar and Antarctic Meteorite Samples to be an Online Database to Serve Researchers and the Public,
50 th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.
- E M Jones
Jones, E.M. 2014. Apollo 17 Lunar Surface Journal, Last accessed: 5 November 2017.
https://history.nasa.gov/alsj/a17/images17.html#22355.
Apollo 16 and 17 spatio-temporal traverse mapping, 54 th LPSC
- T A N R Roseborough
- A R Gonzales
- V Schoonover
- J A Tewary
- M L Woody
- K B Bouwens
- G Patel
- R W Sondrup
- M R Wagner
- J R Henriksen
- M S Leland
- Robinson
Roseborough, T. A.; N. R. Gonzales, A. R. Schoonover, V. Tewary, J. A. Woody, M. L. Bouwens, K. B. Patel, G.
Sondrup, R. W. Wagner, M. R. Henriksen, J. R. Leland, M. S. Robinson, Apollo 16 and 17 spatio-temporal
traverse mapping, 54 th LPSC, The Woodlands, 13-17 March, abstract#2869.
Continuously ("permanently") shadowed lunar regolith sampled by Apollo 17: key tests of regolith temperature strorage for Artemis, 54 th LPSC
- H H Schmitt
Schmitt, H. H., 2023. Continuously ("permanently") shadowed lunar regolith sampled by Apollo 17: key tests of
regolith temperature strorage for Artemis, 54 th LPSC, The Woodlands, 13-17 March, abstract#2170.
Diary of the 12th Man, <americasuncommonsense.com>
- H H Schmitt
Schmitt, H. H., 2022. Diary of the 12th Man, <americasuncommonsense.com>, Chap. 12.
Thermal Histories of Lunar Cold Traps: Prospecting for Volatiles by Thermoluminescence
- Sehlke Sears
Sehlke A and Sears, D. W. G, 2022. Thermal Histories of Lunar Cold Traps: Prospecting for Volatiles by
Thermoluminescence, Lunar Polar Volatiles Conference, held 2-4 November, 2022 in Boulder, Colorado. LPI
Contribution No. 2703.