Temporal and spatial distribution of mare basalts

The temporal and spatial distribution dataset of mare basalts include geological contacts of mare basalts erupted in different episodes, which are refined from the currently most precise spatial extents of mare basalts extracted from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera image mosaics. We collected absolute model age data of lava flow units across global lunar surface identified from images obtained by cameras onboard Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, Kaguya, and Clementine platforms. The database is generated by compilation of literature data and fusion of topographic and compositional datasets from LRO and Kaguya missions. The data are in the internationally recognized ESRI Shapefile format. It can be used for studies on the lunar volcanism and thermal evolution, as well as geological responses of the coevolution of the Earth-Moon system and provides a new and basic reference for future lunar exploration, assessment of compositional distribution and potential resources on the Moon.Citation:Chen, J., Ling, Z., Liu, J., et al., (2022), Digital and global lithologic mapping of the Moon at a 1:2,500,000 scale. Science Bulletin, 67(20): 2050-2054.Lu, X., Cao, H., Ling, Z., Fu, X., Qiao, L., Chen, J. Geomorphology, Mineralogy, and Geochronology of Mare Basalts and Non-Mare Materials around the Lunar Crisium Basin. Remote Sensing, 2021, 13: 4828.Zhao, Z., Chen, J., Ling, Z., et al., (2023), Chronology, composition, and mineralogy of mare basalts in the junction of Oceanus Procellarum, Mare Imbrium, Mare Insularum, and Mare Vaporum. Icarus, 397, 115531.Jin, L., Chen, J., Yu, L., Wang, Y., et al., (2025), Global picture of lunar basalt chronology based on automatic classification of craters. Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, in revision.