Pons is a
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 craters ...
that is located to the west of the prominent
Rupes Altai
Rupes Altai is an escarpment in the lunar surface that is located in the southeastern quadrant of the Moon's near side. It is named for the Altai Mountains in Asia, and is the most prominent lunar escarpment. The selenographic coordinates of this f ...
scarp. It was named after French astronomer
Jean-Louis Pons
Jean-Louis Pons (24 December 176114 October 1831) was a French astronomer. Despite humble beginnings and being self-taught, he went on to become the greatest visual comet discoverer of all time: between 1801 and 1827 Pons discovered thirty-seven ...
.
It lies to the southeast of the crater
Sacrobosco
Johannes de Sacrobosco, also written Ioannes de Sacro Bosco, later called John of Holywood or John of Holybush ( 1195 – 1256), was a scholar, monk, and astronomer who taught at the University of Paris.
He wrote a short introduction to the Hi ...
, and southwest of
Polybius
Polybius (; grc-gre, Πολύβιος, ; ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic period. He is noted for his work , which covered the period of 264–146 BC and the Punic Wars in detail.
Polybius is important for his analysis of the mixed ...
. To the northwest along the same flank of the formation is the crater
Fermat
Pierre de Fermat (; between 31 October and 6 December 1607 – 12 January 1665) was a French mathematician who is given credit for early developments that led to infinitesimal calculus, including his technique of adequality. In particular, he i ...
.
The rim of Pons is somewhat elongated in shape, being longer along a northeast–southwest axis than in the perpendicular direction. The outer wall is irregular and notched, particularly at the northeastern end where it is partly overlain by the satellite crater Pons D and multiple smaller formations. The interior is uneven, with low ridges projecting from the north and southeastern rims.
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 Pons.
References
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{{Commons category
Impact craters on the Moon