Petit is a small, bowl-shaped
lunar
Lunar most commonly means "of or relating to the Moon".
Lunar may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lunar'' (series), a series of video games
* "Lunar" (song), by David Guetta
* "Lunar", a song by Priestess from the 2009 album ''Prior t ...
impact crater
An impact crater is a circular depression in the surface of a solid astronomical object formed by the hypervelocity impact of a smaller object. In contrast to volcanic craters, which result from explosion or internal collapse, impact crater ...
that is located on the northwestern edge of the
Mare Spumans
Mare Spumans (Latin ''spūmāns'', the "foaming sea") is a lunar mare located just south of Mare Undarum on the lunar near side. It is one of the many elevated lakes contained in the Crisium basin, surrounding Mare Crisium. The surrounding basi ...
. The crater has a prominent
ray system. The name is appropriate, since ''petite'' means small in French. But it was actually named in honor of
Alexis Thérèse Petit
Alexis Thérèse Petit (; 2 October 1791, Vesoul, Haute-Saône – 21 June 1820, Paris) was a French physicist.
Petit is known for his work on the efficiencies of air- and steam-engines, published in 1818 (''Mémoire sur l’emploi du principe ...
, a French
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe.
Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
.
The crater lies to the south of the crater
Townley, and east of
Condon. Farther to the northwest is
Apollonius. Petit was previously designated Apollonius W before being given a name by the
IAU
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...
.
External links
LTO-62C4 Condon— L&PI
topographic map
In modern mapping, a topographic map or topographic sheet is a type of map characterized by large- scale detail and quantitative representation of relief features, usually using contour lines (connecting points of equal elevation), but histori ...
References