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Sinus Medii
Sinus Medii (Latin ''sinus mediī'' "Middle Bay") is a small lunar mare. It takes its name from its location at the intersection of the Moon's equator and prime meridian; as seen from the Earth, this feature is located in the central part of the Moon's near side, and it is the point closest to the Earth. From this spot the Earth would always appear directly overhead, although the planet's position would vary slightly due to libration. During the Apollo program, Sinus Medii was designated ALS3. Flight operations planners were concerned about having the optimum lighting conditions at the landing site, hence alternative landing sites moved progressively westward, following the terminator. A delay of two days for weather or equipment reasons would have sent Apollo 11 to Sinus Medii instead of ALS2, Mare Tranquillitatis; another two-day delay would have resulted in ALS5, a site in Oceanus Procellarum, being targeted. Geology The selenographic coordinates of Sinus Medii are , and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is a NASA robotic spacecraft currently orbiting the Moon in an eccentric polar mapping orbit. Data collected by LRO have been described as essential for planning NASA's future human and robotic missions to the Moon. Its detailed mapping program is identifying safe landing sites, locating potential resources on the Moon, characterizing the radiation environment, and demonstrating new technologies. Launched on June 18, 2009, in conjunction with the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), as the vanguard of NASA's Lunar Precursor Robotic Program, LRO was the first United States mission to the Moon in over ten years. LRO and LCROSS were launched as part of the United States's Vision for Space Exploration program. The probe has made a 3-D map of the Moon's surface at 100-meter resolution and 98.2% coverage (excluding polar areas in deep shadow), including 0.5-meter resolution images of Apollo landing sites. The first images f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mare Vaporum
Mare Vaporum (Latin ''vapōrum'', the "sea of vapors") is a lunar mare located between the southwest rim of Mare Serenitatis and the southeast rim of Mare Imbrium. It was named by Giovanni Battista Riccioli in 1651.''Autostar Suite Astronomer Edition''. CD-ROM. Meade, April 2006. The mare lies in an old basin or crater that is within the Procellarum basin. It is in diameter and in area, and is bordered to the northeast by the mountain range Montes Apenninus. In the south of the mare is Rima Hyginus, a rille intersected by the crater Hyginus. The lunar material surrounding the mare is from the Lower Imbrian epoch, and the mare material is from the Eratosthenian The Eratosthenian period in the lunar geologic timescale runs from 3,200 million years ago to 1,100 million years ago. It is named after the crater Eratosthenes, which displays characteristics typical of craters of this age, including a surface ... epoch. References External links Mare Vaporum at The Moon Wiki ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seeliger (crater)
Seeliger is a relatively small lunar impact crater that lies near the southeastern edge of Sinus Medii. It was named after the German astronomer Hugo von Seeliger. This is a circular, cup-shaped feature that has not been appreciably worn by impact erosion. To the southeast is a rille named the Rima Réaumur, following a line to the northwest. In the north is the 110-km-long Rima Oppolzer, which divides the mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more than fo ... where Seeliger is situated from the remainder of the Sinus Medii. Satellite craters By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Seeliger. References * * * * * * * * * * * External linksSeeliger at The Moon Wiki{{Common ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Réaumur (crater)
Réaumur is the remains of a lunar impact crater located on the southern edge of Sinus Medii. Its diameter is 51 km. It was named after the 18th century French scientist René de Réaumur. It shares an eroded rim with the similar crater Oppolzer to the northwest. It lies to the northwest of the large walled plain Hipparchus, and east of Flammarion. To the south is Gyldén, and farther to the south-southwest is Ptolemaeus. The rim of Réaumur is heavily eroded, and the northern half consists of little more than a series of low ridges in the mare. The southern rim is notched and indented by small crater impacts. The interior floor is relatively smooth and flat with no significant features. The broken northern rim intersects a rille Rille (German for 'groove') is typically used to describe any of the long, narrow depressions in the surface of the Moon that resemble channels. The Latin term is ''rima'', plural ''rimae''. Typically, a rille can be several kilometers w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oppolzer (crater)
Oppolzer is the remnant of a lunar impact crater that is located on the southern edge of Sinus Medii, along the meridian of the Moon. Its diameter is 41 km. It was named after the Austrian astronomer Theodor von Oppolzer. It is located within one crater diameter of the origin of the selenographic coordinate system at 0° N, 0° W. Attached to the surviving remnants of the southeast rim is the crater Réaumur. To the west-southwest is the lava-flooded walled plain Flammarion. This formation consists of little more than an irregular arc of mounts along the south, and a ring of scattered ridges along the northern rim. There is a particularly wide gap in the rim to the northeast where no ridges survive to mark the crater perimeter. The interior floor has been resurfaced by basaltic lava. A 110-km-long rille Rille (German for 'groove') is typically used to describe any of the long, narrow depressions in the surface of the Moon that resemble channels. The Latin term is '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flammarion (lunar Crater)
Flammarion is a lunar impact crater on the south edge of Sinus Medii. Its diameter is 76 km. It is named after the French astronomer Camille Flammarion. It is located between the crater Mösting to the northwest and Herschel to the southeast. The bowl-shaped Mösting A intersects the western rim of Flammarion. The worn outer wall of Flammarion is broken in the northwest, and the remainder is eroded and damaged. The most intact section of the wall lies to the southeast. A rille designated Rima Flammarion lies across the gap in the northwest rim, extending about 80 kilometers to the west-southwest. The crater floor has been flooded by lava, and is relatively smooth with only a few scattered craterlets to mark the surface. Satellite craters By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Flammarion. See also * Flammarion (Martian crater) Flammarion is an impact crater in the Syrt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chladni (crater)
Chladni is a small lunar impact crater that lies near the northwest edge of Sinus Medii, in the central part of the Moon. The crater is named for German physicist and musician Ernst Chladni who, in 1794, wrote the first book on meteorites. The rim of the crater is roughly circular, and there is a small central floor at the midpoint of the sloping inner walls. This feature has a higher albedo than the surrounding terrain Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin wo .... It is connected by a low ridge to the rim of the crater Murchison, which lies to the northwest. Due east of Chladni is the larger Triesnecker. References * * * * * * * * * * * External links Chladni at The Moon Wiki [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pallas (crater)
Pallas is a heavily eroded lunar impact crater located to the north of the Sinus Medii. It was named after the German-born Russian natural historian Peter Simon Pallas. To the northwest is the smaller but less worn crater Bode. Pallas shares a low wall with the crater Murchison that is attached to the southeast, and there are two gaps in the shared rim. The outer wall of Pallas is worn, notched, and somewhat distorted in shape. The associated crater Pallas A lies across the northwest rim. The inner floor of Pallas has been flooded by lava, leaving a relatively flat surface. The crater possesses a central peak complex. Lunar flare On November 15, 1953, the physician and amateur astronomer Dr. Leon H. Stuart took a picture of the Moon that appeared to show a flare of light about 16 km southeast of Pallas. The flare was estimated to last for about 8–10 seconds. The report was published in a 1956 issue of ''The Strolling Astronomer'', a newsletter. However the incident was dis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murchison (crater)
Murchison is a lunar impact crater on the north edge of the Sinus Medii. It was named in honour of the geologist Sir Roderick Murchison. It shares a section of rim with the crater Pallas. To the southeast on the mare is the circular crater Chladni, and to the northeast is Ukert. Farther to the east is the prominent Triesnecker. Murchison lies astride the lunar zenith line, i.e. the starting longitude of the selenographic coordinate system. The wall of Murchison is heavily worn and has completely disappeared in a wide gap to the southeast. The rim is most intact along the northeast part of the crater, but even there it is indented and irregular. Only a ridge remains of the rim shared by Pallas and Murchison, with gaps to the north and south. A low ridge from the east wall runs south to join the rim of Chladni. The crater floor has been flooded with lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Triesnecker (crater)
Triesnecker is a prominent Lunar craters, lunar impact crater that is located in the Sinus Medii, near the central part of the Moon's near side. Its diameter is 25 km. It was named after Austrian astronomer Franz de Paula Triesnecker. It is located to the north-northwest of the crater Rhaeticus (crater), Rhaeticus, and to the east-southeast of the flooded Murchison (crater), Murchison. The crater rim of Triesnecker is somewhat distorted from a circular shape, having a notable bulge in the western wall, and lesser rises in the southeastern and northeastern rims. The inner walls are terraced and the interior is somewhat rough, with a central peak at the midpoint. Triesnecker has a ray system that is most prominent when the sun is at a high angle. The rays extend over 300 kilometers. To the east of this crater is an extensive system of rilles extending over an area 200 kilometers across, running generally north–south. These were likely created by tectonic forces beneath the surfa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rima Ariadaeus
Rima Ariadaeus is a linear rille on the Moon at . It is named after the crater Ariadaeus (crater), Ariadaeus, which marks its eastern end. It is over 300 km long and is categorized as a straight rille because of its linear nature. Formation Some scientists think that the linear rilles might have formed after large impact events, while others believe that the rilles were formed as a surface manifestation of deep-seated dike systems when the Moon was still volcanically active. Rima Ariadaeus is thought to have been formed when a section of the Moon's crust sank down between two parallel fault lines (making it a graben or fault trough). Rima Ariadaeus shows no trace of associated volcanism and is thus considered to be an end member of the sequence where only pure faulting is involved i.e. a linear rille. Age The ridges crossing the rille trough of Rima Ariadaeus and the surrounding plains units have been offset by the trough, proving that the ridges are older than the faul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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