Planetary Map Index
Index of Maps of the Planets and Satellites
Original publication by J.L. Inge and R.M. Batson, 1992.
Index Headings
Within each planetary system, maps have been categorized according to version. Photomosaics, shaded relief maps, geologic maps, and contour maps are segregated in order to avoid confusion of one kind of map with another. Within each category, the scale, region, center latitude and longitude, type, year, availability and publication I-number or publishing agency are shown. The headings that follow were used in the listings.
Scale
Maps are listed by scale. Scale notations are abbreviated (e.g., 1:25,000,000 is abbreviated as "25M").
Quad:
Where applicable, numbers are shown designating regions or quadrangles (e.g., Jg-7, MC-13, or LAC-76) in systematic map series. Letters in the designator identify the object mapped and, in the case of DMA (Defense Mapping Agency) lunar maps, are usually acronyms of map descriptions. For example, Jg indicates the system primary (Jupiter) in upper case, and the satellite (Ganymede) in lower case. Other identifiers are as follows:
| H | Mercury (for "Hermes"; M was already being used for Mars when this was assigned) |
| V | Venus |
| L | Moon (for "Luna") |
| M | Mars |
| Mp | Phobos |
| Md | Deimos |
| J | Jupiter |
| Ji | Io |
| Je | Europa |
| Jg | Ganymede |
| Jc | Callisto |
| S | Saturn |
| Sm | Mimas |
| Se | Enceladus |
| St | |
| Tethys | |
| Sd | Dione |
| Sr | Rhea |
| Si | Iapetus |
| U | Uranus |
| Um | Miranda |
| Ua | Ariel |
| Uu | Umbriel |
| Ut | Titania |
| Uo | Oberon |
| N | Neptune |
| Nt | Triton |
DMA Numbers:
Many variations of lunar map designators exist. A partial designator list is given below. A more detailed description of these maps is contained in the review of each map series.
| AIC | Apollo Intermediate Chart |
| LAC | Lunar Astronautical Chart |
| LEMC | Lunar Equatorial Zone Mosaics |
| LO | Lunar Orthophotomap |
| LOC | Lunar Planning Chart |
| LM | Lunar Map (based upon spacecraft data) |
| LMP | Lunar Earthside, Farside, and Polar Charts |
| LTO | Lunar Topographic Orthophotomap |
| ORB | Lunar Orbiter Photomap or Relief Map |
| RLC | Ranger Lunar Chart |
Title:
This column contains the published map title. The title is linked to a detail sheet for the map, which shows the map's center and/or minimum and maximum latitude and longitude, comments, authorship, and other information.
Map Coordinate:
Center and/or minimum-maximum latitude and longitude coordinates are given for each listed map.
Type:
Planetary and satellite maps published by the USGS have alphabetical terms in the designator code that define the type of base used for map compilation. Definitions of these codes are listed below. Because these codes have evolved over the years, those on early maps are not entirely consistent with those on later ones. This system was not used for lunar maps published by the DMA, but we have added the terms to their entries to facilitate sorting and comparisons of the lists.
| AN | Airbrushed rendition combining shaded relief, albedo markings, or other data. Nomenclature is included. |
| CM | Controlled photomosaic. |
| CMC | Controlled photomosaic with albedo markings and contour lines (used on older maps). |
| OM | Orthophotomosaic. |
| OMT | Orthophotomosaic with nomenclature and contour lines. |
| R | Shaded relief (usually an airbrush rendition). |
| RN | Shaded relief with nomenclature. |
| RMC | Shaded relief with albedo markings and contour lines (used on older maps). |
| SM | Semi controlled mosaic. |
| UM | Uncontrolled photomosaic. |
| T | Contour lines and nomenclature. As a secondary designator, indicates contours and names overprinted on other base maps. Secondary codes often follow the primary ones and are found only in combination with the codes listed above. |
| K | Designator applied to any sheet showing color pictures or color coding. |
| M | Albedo markings (used on older maps). |
| N | Nomenclature. |
Thus RKT is a relief map with color-coded contour intervals. Similarly, AT indicates that the map is an airbrush rendition of shaded relief, albedo features overprinted with contour lines and feature nomenclature.
Many planetwide maps are designated simply by an edition number followed by a version designator (e.g., "1AN", "2RN" or "3CM").
Year, Availability, Authors, and Publishing Agency:
The year of publication is the last item shown in the lists. The availability, the authors, and the publishing agency are shown on the map detail page linked to each map's title. Map packages containing more than one sheet usually indicate different sheets (e.g., "Sheet 1 of 2" or "Sheet 2 of 4") and are often indicated in the comments. Maps that are still in print are denoted, and digital versions will be linked on the map detail page.
USGS maps are for sale by U.S. Geological Survey, Branch of Distribution, Box 25286, Federal Center, Denver CO 80225, or by calling 888-ASK-USGS. The I-number is required when ordering.
DMA maps and digital maps on CD-ROM disks may be obtained through Joseph M. Boyce, Discipline Scientist, Planetary Geology and Geophysics Program, Office of Space Science and Applications, National Aeronautics and Space Administration Head quarters, Code SL, Washington, DC 20546.
GUGK indicates the "Glavnoye Uprableniye Geodezii: Kartograffii" (Main Administration of Geodesy: Cartography) of the U.S.S.R.