090-formation-of-tycho-dixon –The painting depicts the cataclysmic kinetic impact event that created the prominent lunar crater Tycho. Viewed from a high orbital perspective above a heavily cratered lunar limb, a massive asteroid impact generates a blinding, expanding dome of incandescent plasma and molten ejecta. A towering vertical plume of vaporized rock erupts into the vacuum of space, while powerful concentric shockwaves fracture the surrounding ancient crust across the lunar terrain. ; gouache on illustration board, 1977 by Don Dixon
Click to open this image within the album!
