LPI | Resources

Evolving Theories on the Origin of the Moon

Warren D. Cummings
Springer, 2019, 311 pages

This book follows the development of research on the origin of the Moon from the late 18th century to the present. By compiling the major texts, papers, and events of the time, it provides a thorough chronicle of the paradigmatic shift in planetary science that arose from the notion that the Earth-Moon system was formed from two colliding planetary bodies.

Back to the Moon

Nova Production for PBS, 2019, one DVD (56 minutes)

In this 2019 video produced on the 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 Moon landing, NOVA looks ahead to the hoped-for dawn of a new age in lunar exploration. This time, governments and private industry are working together to reach our nearest celestial neighbor. But why go back? The Moon can serve as a platform for basic astronomical research, as an abundant source of rare metals and hydrogen fuel, and ultimately as a stepping-stone for human missions to Mars and beyond.

Lunar Pro

Produced by AstroReality, 2017
One small model

This lunar model helps you explore the Moon in augmented reality. The model is used with your camera, the AstroReality app, and a unique QR code. It is precisely made with up to 0.006-millimeters-per-pixel precision based on data captured by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Moonshots: 50 Years of NASA Space Exploration Seen Through Hasselblad Cameras

Piers Bizony
Voyageur Press, 2017, 240 pages

Moonshots is a photographic chronicle of NASA space exploration featuring more than 200 remarkable photographs created almost exclusively on large-format Hasselblad cameras. Aerospace author Piers Bizony scoured NASA’s archives of Hasselblad film frames to assemble this large-format book.

Explore the Moon in Augmented Reality

Lunar and Planetary Institute, 2017, one poster of a seven-poster series

The Lunar and Planetary Institute has developed a series of seven free posters and a free augmented reality (AR) app that takes you on a journey through space. This interactive tour includes a look at the Moon. Discover surface features of Earth’s nearest neighbor by interacting with a 3-D model of the Moon, and view the Apollo 11 command module up close from the inside and out.

The Value of the Moon: How to Explore, Live, and Prosper in Space Using the Moon’s Resources

Paul D. Spudis
Smithsonian Books, 2016, 243 pages

While the Moon was once thought to hold the key to space exploration, in recent decades, the U.S. has largely turned its sights toward Mars and other celestial bodies instead. In The Value of the Moon, lunar scientist Paul Spudis argues that the United States can and should return to the Moon in order to remain a world leader in space utilization and development and a participant in and beneficiary of a new lunar economy.

Modern Mysteries of the Moon: What We Still Don’t Know About Our Lunar Companion

Vincent S. Foster
Springer, 2016, 363 pages

There are still many questions that remain about the Moon. From concentric craters to lunar swirls, water vapor, and lunar reverberations on impact, the author collects it all in this book for a fascinating tour that will illuminate the backyard observer’s understanding of this easily viewed but imperfectly understood celestial object. Examined here are many of the most interesting puzzles and what has been revealed by exploring them — as well as what questions remain.

The Formation of the Moon

Warren D. Cummings
Universities Space Research Association, 2016, 370 pages

This book chronicles major questions pertaining to the processes that formed the major features on the lunar nearside and how understanding evolved as better observations were obtained after lunar samples were collected.

21^st Century Atlas of the Moon

Charles A. Wood and Maurice J. S. Collins
West Virginia University Press, 2012, 111 pages

This atlas is uniquely designed for the backyard, amateur astronomer. As an indispensable guide to telescopic Moon observation, it can be used at the telescope or as a desk reference. It is both accessible to the novice and valuable to the expert. With over 200 Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter images, the highest quality images of the Moon ever taken, this atlas illustrates the Moon in high resolution.

The Clementine Atlas of the Moon, Revised and Updated Edition

Ben Bussey and Paul D. Spudis
Cambridge University Press, 2012, 317 pages

The highly successful Clementine mission to the Moon in 1994 gave scientists their first global look at the Moon. Both the near- and farsides were mapped. This atlas is based on Clementine mission data and covers the entire Moon in 144 Lunar Aeronautical Charts. It represents the most complete lunar nomenclature database in existence and is the first atlas to show the entire lunar surface in uniform scale and format. The atlas also includes a section of color plates showing lunar composition and physical properties.

Sky & Telescope Moon Globe

Produced by Sky & Telescope, 2012, one 12-inch-diameter globe

Thanks to NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), we can examine the Moon in greater detail than ever before. Sky & Telescope’s Moon globe is the first to show the Moon as it really is, using a surface map based on more than 15,000 LRO images, each taken under consistent and ideal lighting conditions. The globe includes craters, rilles, peaks, valleys, and human and robotic landing sites in sharp detail, and these features are marked with over 850 labels.

Moon 3-D: The Lunar Surface Comes to Life

Jim Bell
Sterling Publishing, 2009, 148 pages

This book is a stunning three-dimensional tour of the Moon. After a series of brief essays explaining the history and future of lunar exploration, the volume launches into a spectacular showcase of 3-D images taken by both robotic and human exploration missions. In addition, an artistic selection of non-3-D photos appears throughout, along with conceptual designs for future Moon-based adventures.

The Moon

Michael Carlowicz
Abrams, 2007, 240 pages

This book explores how the Moon has affected Earth, how it has profoundly influenced our beliefs and our cultures, and how it continues to impact our science. This is the full picture, from the Moon’s fiery and violent birth four billion years ago to the near future when humankind will once again stand on the lunar surface.

Once and Future Moon Poster

Lunar and Planetary Institute, 1999, one color poster

This poster is full color on one side, and there are individual back panels that feature facts about the Moon and what we learned from the Apollo, Clementine, and Lunar Prospector missions. Two educational activities are also included.

Lunar Sourcebook: A User’s Guide to the Moon

Grant H. Heiken, David T. Vaniman, and Bevan M. French, editors
Cambridge University Press, 1991, 736 pages
Also available online and on CD-ROM

This volume is a concise collection of data gathered during the U.S. and Soviet missions and is a one-volume reference encyclopedia of scientific and technical information about the Moon. It provides a thorough introduction to lunar studies and information about the nature of the lunar environment, and also explores the formation and evolution of the Moon’s surface, the chemical and mineralogical nature of lunar rocks and soils, and the nature, origin, and history of the Moon.