NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day for Saturday, Nov. 7, features the De Gerlache-Kocher Massif, a mountain formation near the Moon’s south pole that rises about 4 kilometers above its surroundings, according to the APOD page.
Related: NASA Asks Companies How to Boost Hubble.
The image
The telescope image of the massif on the Moon’s edge was taken on Oct. 31 by Alejandro Sanz, according to APOD. A favorable libration angle, or lunar wobble, gave an oblique view across the south pole, the page said. The Boston Report is not republishing the image because it is not in the public domain.
Why the south pole matters
The south polar region has permanently shadowed crater floors that likely hold water ice and peaks that receive almost continuous sunlight, APOD said. NASA has said the lunar South Pole has never been explored by a crewed mission.
Its place in Artemis plans
NASA listed the De Gerlache-Kocher Massif among its 13 original candidate regions for the Artemis III crewed landing. The massif does not appear on NASA’s refined list of nine candidate regions, which includes de Gerlache Rim 2, Haworth and Malapert Massif (TBR comparison of NASA’s two lists).
APOD said the massif has been considered as a potential landing site for future crewed Artemis missions. More coverage is in Science.
Sources
- NASA APOD: De Gerlache-Kocher Massif (Nov. 7, 2026)
- NASA: NASA Identifies Candidate Regions for Landing Next Americans on Moon
- NASA: NASA Provides Update on Artemis III Moon Landing Regions
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