+ 1970 News Releases (7.6 Mb PDF file) - NASA

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MSC 70-111
would be of great importance in understanding the past and present
physical state of the Moon.
A major problem with the Daw/ site is that neither Lunar Orbiter
photography nor Apollo phctography to date provides adequate coverage
for mission planning. It does not appear likely that adequate photography
of Davy will be obtained on Apollo 14 or 15.
Marius Hills_ a group of domes and cones near the center of Oceanus
Proeellarui_l_ is the most westerly site proposed for an Apollo landing.
The tentative landing site (14 degrees 36 minutes north and 56 degrees
34 minutes west) is in the vicinity of the greatest variety and most
complete collection of vohcanie-like forms on the lunar surface. The
volcanic complex lies along a major ridge system which has been eommared
to terrestrial mid-ocean Fidges with volcanic plateaus such as Iceland
and the Azores. The age of the Marius Hills complex will establish a
minimum age for the internal generation of lunar magma, a required step
in determining the %hennak history of the Moon. Samples from this site
may also show changes in magma composition which can be correlated with
t_me to reconstruct the history of interior lunar processes.
Unlike other sites which offer both highland and mare materials for
sampling_ Marius Hills appears to offer little hope of yielding any
highland
material.
The crater Tycho, 80 kilometers {nearly 50 miles) in diameter_
[s the most prominent of all rayed lunar craters_ and at full moon
_t dominates the southern part of the lunar highlands and is v{sible
to she naked eye.
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