Proclus is a young

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 ...

located to the west of the

Mare Crisium Mare Crisium (Latin ''crisium'', the "Sea of Crises") is a lunar mare located in the Moon's Crisium basin, just northeast of Mare Tranquillitatis. The basin is of the Pre-Imbrian period, 4.55 to 3.85 billion years ago. Characteristics Mare Cri ...

, on the east shore of the

Palus Somni Palus Somni (Latin ''palūs somnī'' "Marsh of Sleep") is an area on the Moon of relatively level but somewhat uneven terrain that lies along the northeastern edge of Mare Tranquillitatis and the Sinus Concordiae. It has selenographic coordinates ...

. Its diameter is 27 km. It was named after 5th century Greek mathematician, astronomer and philosopher

Proclus Proclus Lycius (; 8 February 412 – 17 April 485), called Proclus the Successor ( grc-gre, Πρόκλος ὁ Διάδοχος, ''Próklos ho Diádokhos''), was a Greek Neoplatonist philosopher, one of the last major classical philosophers ...

It lies to the south of the prominent, terraced crater

Macrobius Macrobius Ambrosius Theodosius, usually referred to as Macrobius (fl. AD 400), was a Roman provincial who lived during the early fifth century, during late antiquity, the period of time corresponding to the Later Roman Empire, and when Latin was ...

, and west-northwest of the lava-flooded Yerkes.

Description

The rim of Proclus is distinctly

polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two toge ...

al in shape, having the shape of a

pentagon In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be simpl ...

, and does not rise very far above the surrounding terrain. It has a high

albedo Albedo (; ) is the measure of the diffuse reflection of sunlight, solar radiation out of the total solar radiation and measured on a scale from 0, corresponding to a black body that absorbs all incident radiation, to 1, corresponding to a body ...

, being second only to Aristarchus in brightness. The interior wall displays some slumping, and the floor is uneven with a few small rises from slump blocks. The crater has a notable

ray system A ray system comprises radial streaks of fine '' ejecta'' thrown out during the formation of an impact crater, looking somewhat like many thin spokes coming from the hub of a wheel. The rays may extend for lengths up to several times the diameter ...

that extends for a distance of over 600 kilometers. The rays display an asymmetry of form, with the most prominent being rays to the northwest, north-northeast, and northeast. There is an arc with no ejecta to the southwest. These features suggest an impact at a low angle. The rays indicate the crater is part of the Copernican System.Apollo 15 Preliminary Science Report (NASA SP-289), Chapter 25, Part J, ''Preliminary geologic map of the region around the candidate Proclus Apollo landing site'' by Don E. Wilhelms, 1972 A candidate landing site for the Apollo program was located about 100 km north-northeast of Proclus.Apollo 15 Preliminary Science Report (NASA SP-289), Chapter 25, Part K, ''Geologic sketch map of the candidate Proclus Apollo landing site'' by Baerbel Koesters Lucchitta, 1972 The site was rejected in favor of the geologically diverse Taurus-Littrow valley for the

Apollo 17 Apollo 17 (December 7–19, 1972) was the final mission of NASA's Apollo program, the most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon or traveled beyond low Earth orbit. Commander Gene Cernan and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt walked on ...

mission.

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 Proclus. The following craters have been renamed 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 ...

. * Proclus F — ''See''

Crile (crater) Crile is a tiny lunar impact crater. It is roughly circular and cup-shaped, with interior walls that slope down to the midpoint. The crater lies in the Palus Somni, between the Mare Crisium to the east and Mare Tranquillitatis to the west. This fo ...

. File:Proclus D crater AS17-150-23052.jpg, Proclus D File:Proclus G crater AS17-M-2240.jpg, Proclus G

References

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External links

{{Commonscat
LTO-43C3 Proclus
Lunar Topographic Orthophotomap (LTO) Series
LTO-61B2 Glaisher
Lunar Topographic Orthophotomap (LTO) Series
Oblique closeup of Proclus crater
from Apollo 17 (Figure 147 o

(NASA SP-362), 1978)
Apollo 17 image AS17-150-23047
using the 70 mm Hasselblad. Impact craters on the Moon