Topography of the lunar poles from radar interferometry: A survey of cold trap locations

Detailed topographic maps of the lunar poles have been obtained by Earth-ba sed radar-interferometry with the 3.5-centimeter wavelength Goldstone Solar System Radar. The interferometer provided maps 300 kilometers by 1000 kilo meters of both polar regions at 150-meter spatial resolution and 50-meter h eight resolution. Using ray tracing, these digital elevation models were us ed to locate regions that are in permanent shadow from solar illumination a nd may harbor ice-deposits. Estimates of the total extent of shadowed areas poleward of 87.5 degrees latitude are 1030 and 2550 square kilometers for the north and south poles, respectively.