The effects of impact velocity on the evolution of experimental regolithsFragmental targets consisting of a coarse-grained gabbro were subjected to multiple impacts with stainless-steel spheres at 0.7, 1.4, and 1.9 km/s in order to investigate the effects of impact velocity on the generation and evolution of experimental regoliths. Although the low-velocity impactors were shown to be more efficient in terms of both mass comminution and the creating of new surfaces, the comminuted material formed by the faster projectiles possessed smaller mean grain sizes and larger proportions of fine-grained debris. The 2-4 mm material was found in all cases to exhibit a mass excess relative to the adjacent size fractions.
Document ID
19890023511
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Cintala, Mark J. (NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)
Horz, Friedrich (NASA Johnson Space Center Houston, TX, United States)