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The south pole region features many craters and basins such as the South Pole–Aitken basin, which appears to be one of the most fundamental features of the Moon, [7] and mountains, such as Epsilon Peak at 9.050 km, taller than any mountain found on Earth. The south pole temperature averages approximately 260 K (−13 °C; 8 °F).
Von Kármán is a large lunar impact crater that is located in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. The crater is about 186 km (116 mi) in diameter and lies within an immense impact crater known as the South Pole–Aitken basin of roughly 2,500 km (1,600 mi) in diameter and 13 km (8.1 mi) deep. [ 1 ]
The South Pole-Aitken basin is located at the lunar south pole. This is the second largest known impact basin in the Solar System, as well as the oldest and biggest impact feature on the Moon, [38] and should provide geologists access to deeper layers of the Moon's crust. It is where the Chinese Chang'e 4 has landed, on the far side.
Due to Haworth's position near the lunar south pole, large amounts of the crater are permanently shadowed regions.These regions are very cold; many are believed to never reach temperatures above 40 Kelvin, making Haworth colder than nearby craters such as Shackleton and Faustini. [4]
In the same year, another NASA probe that hit the south pole found water ice below the moon's surface. An earlier NASA mission, the 1998 Lunar Prospector, had found evidence that the highest ...
Amundsen is a large lunar impact crater located near the south pole of the Moon, named after the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. It lies along the southern lunar limb, and so is viewed from the side by an observer on the Earth. To the northwest is the crater Scott, a formation of similar dimensions that is named for another Antarctic explorer.
One of the NASA missions to the Moon under study would send a sample-return lander to the South Pole–Aitken basin, the location of a major impact event that created a formation nearly 2,400 km (1,500 mi) across. The force of this impact has created a deep penetration into the lunar surface, and a sample returned from this site could be ...
Shackleton is an impact crater that lies at the lunar south pole. The peaks along the crater's rim are exposed to almost continual sunlight, while the interior is perpetually in shadow. The low-temperature interior of this crater functions as a cold trap that may capture and freeze volatiles shed during comet impacts on the Moon.