Geologic Atlas of the Moon

If you rely upon the USGS web pages to explain to you how to order a sheet from the Geologic Atlas of the Moon, you will probably never figure it out. Here is how it is done.

First, you download their Fax order form (this is the easiest way to place an order).

Second, you fill out the form with the maps you want to order. Everything on the order form will be self-explanatory except two items - the stock number, and the price. The only USGS document that includes "stock number" is the order form, so there is no way of telling what the USGS stock number is for a map that you know exists, unless you happen to know the secret. And when it comes to price, the USGS map price list does not unambiguously tell you how much lunar geologic maps cost. The USGS astrogeology web pages have some lists of maps which include prices, but some of these prices are wrong. Here's how it works:

1) Prices for all maps in the Geologic Atlas of the Moon cost $7, no matter what the USGS web pages tell you.
2) The "stock number" in the fax order form needs to be the "I-Number" or the "map number" of the map that you want.

To find the "I-Number" of the map you want, check out this page. Scroll down until you find MOON in the first column. In the next column, the "1M" maps (1:1,000,000 scale) are the quadrangle maps in the Geologic Atlas series. As long as you are looking at "1M" maps of the moon, the next two columns will read something like "LAC 11" (the number will vary, of course). These simply indicate what LAC chart is the basis of the geologic map, so you can ignore this information for your order. Following the LAC number is the map description, such as "J. Herschel: Geology;" you will want to write this in the "Product Name or Title" field of the fax order form. From here, ignore all other columns until the last one. The last column is the "I-Number," only without the "I" before it. To order the map, you write this number, preceded by "I-", in the "Stock Number" field of the fax order form. In other words, the last column in this table is the magical "Stock Number" that the order-takers are looking for. So to order "J. Herschel: Geology," which corresponds to LAC 11, the stock number is I-604.

The 250k, 100k, 50k, and 25k maps in the lunar series are maps produced for special purposes and aren't part of the quads, but some of these will nominally be part of the Geologic Atlas. You may or may not want these; most people just want the quads.

Third, fax in the order, and you'll have your maps in a week or so. They are really quite efficient about filling orders and shipping quickly.