Infrared Observations Of the Eclipsed Moon from Space


	At left are larger images of the data taken during the first DCE just as the Moon enters totality, while the right panel shows the images from the second DCE, which observed the Moon just as totality ends. Images created from the first and last scan appear in the upper left and lower right of each panel. Here, measurements taken at the end of the even scans were combined with those at the beginning of the following odd scans to create the middle four images. This pairing combines data that are separated by only about a minute in time.
	As can be seen, the Moon perceptively cools as the eclipse progresses. Also evident are the numerous hot spots, labeled anomalous by previous investigators. The brightest of these anomalies are associated with craters, Tycho and Copernicus being the brightest. However, the maria on the Moon are clearly defined and are at an elevated temperature, which is expected given the grain sizes¹ and the relatively low albedos. The highlands are relatively cool because their albedo is high. The coolest temperatures are to the lower right of Tycho, limb-ward and above Mare Humorum and the Jura mountains. The craters, especially the rayed craters, also have a relatively high albedo but are warm owing to the thermo-physical characteristics of their rough floors and the fact that the walls of the craters “trap” heat.
	Shorthill¹ says that there are over 1000 anomalies, or hot spots that are distinct, detectable features of the mid-infrared infrared maps obtained either during eclipse or the lunar night. These mid-infrared features correlate well with those at 4.3 µm (compare the figures in view graphs 8 and 9.)