Lunar and Planetary Institute

Lunar Samples

Apollo Samples
Pictures and descriptions of rocks and soil collected by Apollo astronauts on the lunar surface and returned to Earth.

Luna Samples
Pictures and descriptions of rocks and soil retrieved by Luna sample return missions.

Overviews of Apollo samples are available through the links along the right margin.

Photographs of lunar samples are available in LPI’s Lunar Sample Atlas.  This library of images provides pictures of the Apollo samples taken in the Lunar Sample Laboratory, full-color views of the samples in microscopic thin-sections, cutting views and diagrams that illustrate how the samples were subdivided for scientific analyses, and in situ views of the samples on the lunar surface.  The atlas contains information about the type of sample (e.g., rock, soil), the lithology (e.g., basalt, norite), and a description of the sample.  Links to additional information about each sample are provided for those that have been previously described in The Lunar Sample Compendium and Lunar Sample Catalogs.  Version 1 of the atlas is being released in August 2009.  The process of scanning lunar sample images continues and the atlas will grow in the future.

Detailed descriptions of several samples are available courtesy of the Lunar Sample Curator’s office at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. The information was compiled by Charles Meyer in The Lunar Sample Compendium. Links to specific Apollo and Luna samples in Meyer’s compendium are also provided below in several different categories.


Lunar Samples by Category


BASALT

Lunar basalts are samples of extrusive
lava flows of volcanic magma.
10003 10017 10020 10022 10024 10029
10031 10032 10044 10045 10047 10049
10050 10057 10058 10062 10069 10071
10072 10092 12002 12004 12005 12006
12007 12008 12009 12011 12012 12014
12015 12016 12017 12018 12019 12020
12021 12022 12031 12035 12036 12038
12039 12040 12043 12045 12046 12047
12051 12052 12053 12054 12055 12056
12061 12062 12063 12064 12065 12072
12075 12076 12077 14053 14310 15016
15382 15386 15555 60639 70017 70035
70135 70215 70255 71035 71036 71037
71055 74275 75015 75035 75055 75075
79155 Luna16B1 Luna24170

BRECCIA

Lunar breccias are welded debris from impact craters.
10046 10060 10065 10068 12013 12010
12034 12073 14301 14303 14304 14305
14311 14321 15059 15295 15298 15299
15307 15405 15418 15425 15445 15455
15459 60035 60095 60135 60315 60625
60639 60639 61015 61016 62255 64425
64435 64455 64475 64535 65015 65016
65035 65785 66095 67016 67935 68815
67915 69935 72215 72235 72255 72275
72435 73215 73216 73217 73235 73255
73275 76055 76295 77035 77115 77135

PLUTONIC

Lunar plutonic rocks are coarsely crystalline
rocks of slowly cooled deep-seated origin.
15362 15415 15445 15455 60015 60025
60055 60618 60619 60639 60665 62236
62237 62275 65315 65325 65785 67075
67667 69955 72415 72559 73235 73255
76535 77075 77215 78235 78236 78255
78527

SOIL

Lunar soil is regolith material produced by meteorite bombardment with the lunar surface.
14141 14148 14149 14156 14163 14240
14259 14425 15014 15030 15260 15425
60050 60500 60600 61220 61240 61500
63320 63340 64420 64501 67940 70180
72320 74220 76240 Luna16B1 Luna24170

CORE

A total of 54 feet of core samples has been
collected from the top of the lunar regolith.
12027 14210 14211 14220 14230 15007
15009 15010 60010 60014 64002 68002
70009 76001 79002 A15drill A16drill A17drill
Drillcore Drive_Tubes_Tbl Drive_tubes Hardware

SCR

These samples were used for depth-profile
studies of cosmic-ray-produced nuclides.
10017 12002 12054 14310 64455 68815
74275 A15drill

THIN SECTIONS

These samples are the ones included in the
Educational Petrographic Thin Section Sets.
12002 12005 14305 15299 60025 65015
70017 72275 74220 78235

DISPLAY

About 70 lunar samples are on public display around the world, including:
10017 10020 10045 10047 10057 10072
12006 12018 12022 12047 12053 12055
12065 14305 14310 14311 14321 15016
15459 15555 60015 60025 61016 67016
67915 70017 70035 70215 75015 76055
77035

APOLLO 11

These samples were collected during the Apollo 11 mission.
10003 10017 10020 10022 10024 10029
10031 10032 10044 10045 10046 10047
10049 10050 10057 10058 10060 10062
10065 10068 10069 10071 10072 10092

APOLLO 12

These samples were collected during the Apollo 12 mission.
12002 12004 12005 12006 12007 12008
12009 12010 12011 12012 12013 12014
12015 12016 12017 12018 12019 12020
12021 12022 12027 12031 12034 12035
12036 12038 12039 12040 12043 12045
12046 12047 12051 12052 12053 12054
12055 12056 12061 12062 12063 12064
12065 12072 12073 12075 12076 12077

APOLLO 14

These samples were collected during the Apollo 14 mission.
14053 14141 14148 14149 14156 14163
14210 14211 14220 14240 14259 14301
14303 14304 14305 14310 14311 14321
14425    

APOLLO 15

These samples were collected during the Apollo 15 mission.
15007 15009 15010 15014 15016 15030
15059 15260 15295 15298 15299 15307
15362 15382 15386 15405 15415 15418
15425 15445 15455 15459 15555 15014
15030 A15drill

APOLLO 16

These samples were collected during the Apollo 16 mission.
60010 60014 60015 60025 60035 60050
60055 60095 60135 60315 60500 60600
60618 60619 60625 60639 60639 60665
61015 61016 61220 61240 61500 62236
62237 62255 62275 63320 63340 64002
64420 64425 64435 64455 64475 64501
64535 65015 65016 65035 65315 65325
65785 66095 67016 67075 67667 67915
67935 67940 68002 68815 69935 69955
A16drill
 

APOLLO 17

These samples were collected during the Apollo 17 mission.
70009 70017 70035 70135 70180 70215
70255 71035 71036 71037 71055 72215
72235 72255 72275 72320 72415 72435
72559 73215 73216 73217 73235 73255
73275 74220 74275 75015 75035 75055
75075 76001 76055 76240 76295 76535
77035 77075 77115 77135 77215 78235
78236 78255 78527 79002 79155 A17drill

LUNA

These samples were collected by the
Soviet Luna robotic missions.
Luna16B1 Luna24170

Lunar Receiving Laboratory

Lunar Receiving Laboratory Project History (2004)
NASA-CR-2004-208938, S. Mangus and W. Larsen, 76 pages.

Apollo Sample Catalogues

Apollo-11 Lunar Sample Information Catalogue (Revised 1977)
F.E. Kramer et al., JSC Publication 12522.

Introduction to the Apollo Collections: Part I - Igneous Rocks (1977)
P.E. McGee et al., LPI Contribution No. 269, 101 pages.

Apollo 14 Rock Samples (1978)
I.C. Carlson and W.J.A. Walton Jr., JSC Publication 14240.

Introduction to the Apollo Collections:  Part II – Lunar Breccias (1979)
P.E. McGee et al., 221 pages.

Handbook of Lunar Soils (1983)
R. V. Morris et al., Planetary Materials Branch Publication 67, JSC Publication 19069.

Catalog of Apollo 15 Rocks Part 1. 15015-15299 (1985)
G. Ryder, Curatorial Branch Publication 72, JSC Publication 20787.

Catalog of Apollo 15 Rocks Part 2. 15306-15468 (1985)
G. Ryder, Curatorial Branch Publication 72, JSC Publication 20787.

Catalog of Apollo 15 Rocks Part 3. 15475-15698 (1985)
G. Ryder, Curatorial Branch Publication 72, JSC Publication 20787.

Catalog of Apollo 16 Rocks Part 1, 60015-62315 (1980)
G. Ryder and M. D. Norman, Curatorial Branch Publication 52, JSC Publication 16904.

Catalog of Apollo 16 Rocks Part 2, 63335-66095 (1980)
G. Ryder and M. D. Norman, Curatorial Branch Publication 52, JSC Publication 16904.

Catalog of Apollo 16 Rocks Part 3, 67015-69965 (1980)
G. Ryder and M. D. Norman, Curatorial Branch Publication 52, JSC Publication 16904.

Catalog of Apollo 17 Rocks Volume 1 - Stations 2 and 3 (South Massif)
Ryder, G., JSC-26088

Catalog of Apollo 17 Rocks Volume 2 - Central Valley, Part 1
Neal, C. R. and L. A. Taylor, JSC-26088

Catalog of Apollo 17 Rocks Volume 3 - Central Valley, Part 2
Neal, C. R. and L. A. Taylor, JSC-26088

Catalog of Apollo 17 Rocks Volume 4 - North Massif
Meyer, C., JSC-26088

Lunar Soils Grain Size Catalog (1993)
J.C. Graf, NASA Reference Publication 1265
Front Matter
Apollo 11 soils
Apollo 12 soils
Apollo 14 soils
Apollo 15 soils
Luna 24 soils
Apollo 16 soils
Apollo 17 soils
Bibliography
To download complete volume (117 MB), click here.

Lunar Petrographic Thin Section Set

Lunar Petrographic Thin Section Set (2003)
Charles Meyer, 67 pages. (Digitized version of the booklet that accompanies the educational thin section set available from the Lunar Sample Curator’s office.)

Additional images of the Lunar Petrographic Thin-Section Set 
Kurt Hollocher, Union College

Lunar Simulants

Guide to Using Lunar Soil and Simulants for Experimentation (1985) 
In Lunar Bases, J. H. Allton et al., 10 pages.

JSC-1: A New Lunar Soil Simulant

Lunar Regolith Simulant Materials Workshop (2004)

Development of New Lunar Simulants JSC-1A and JSC-1AF (2007)

Future Sample Requirements

Curation of Geological Materials at a Lunar Outpost (1993)
A.H. Treiman, Office of Curator Publication #87, JSC-26194, 29 pages.

Lunar EVA Sample Mass (2007)
D.A. Kring, 13 page briefing.

Workshop on Architecture Issues Associated with Sampling (2007)
NASA, NP-2009-00-000-HQ, 62 pages.

Analysis of Lunar Sample Mass Capability for the Lunar Exploration Architecture (2007)
Curation and Analysis Planning Team for Extraterrestrial Materials (CAPTEM), 14 pages.

Lunar Sample Glossary

Glossary of Lunar Sample Terms (1974)
A.M. Reid et al., NASA Johnson Space Center, 32 pages.

 
Image of a Lunar sample