Mare Tranquillitatis (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

''tranquillitātis'', the Sea of Tranquillity or Sea of Tranquility; see spelling differences) is a

lunar mare The lunar maria (; singular: mare ) are large, dark, basaltic plains on Earth's Moon, formed by ancient asteroid impacts on the far side on the Moon that triggered volcanic activity on the opposite (near) side. They were dubbed , Latin for 'seas' ...

that sits within the Tranquillitatis basin on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width ...

. It is the first location on another world to be visited by humans. The mare material within the basin consists of

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90% of a ...

formed in the intermediate to young age group of the

Upper Imbrian The Imbrian is a lunar geologic period divided into two epochs, the Early and Late. Early Imbrian In the lunar geologic timescale, the Early Imbrian epoch occurred from 3,850 million years ago to about 3,800 million years ago. It overlaps the end ...

epoch. The surrounding mountains are thought to be of the Lower Imbrian epoch, but the actual basin is probably Pre-Nectarian. The basin has irregular margins and lacks a defined multiple-ringed structure. The irregular topography in and near this basin results from the intersection of the Tranquillitatis,

Nectaris ''Nectaris'', occasionally released as ''Military Madness'', is a series of sci-fi-themed, hex map turn-based strategy games for a variety of systems. The games were developed by Hudson Soft. The company was absorbed by Konami in 2012, and as ...

, Crisium, Fecunditatis, and Serenitatis basins with two throughgoing rings of the Procellarum basin. Palus Somni, on the northeastern rim of the mare, is filled with the basalt that spilled over from Tranquillitatis. This mare has a slight bluish tint relative to the rest of the Moon and stands out quite well when color is processed and extracted from multiple photographs. The color is likely due to higher metal content in the basaltic soil or rocks. Unlike many other maria, there is no mass concentration (mascon), or gravitational high, in the center of Mare Tranquillitatis. Mascons were identified in the center of other maria (such as Serenitatis or Imbrium) from Doppler tracking of the five Lunar Orbiter spacecraft in 1968. The gravity field was mapped at higher resolution with later orbiters such as

Lunar Prospector ''Lunar Prospector'' was the third mission selected by NASA for full development and construction as part of the Discovery Program. At a cost of $62.8 million, the 19-month mission was designed for a low polar orbit investigation of the Moon ...

and GRAIL, which unveiled an irregular pattern. File:Tranquillitatis basin topo.jpg, Topographic map File:Tranquillitatis basin GRAIL gravity.jpg, Gravity map based on GRAIL

Naming

Mare Tranquillitatis was named in 1651 by astronomers Francesco Grimaldi and

Giovanni Battista Riccioli Giovanni Battista Riccioli, SJ (17 April 1598 – 25 June 1671) was an Italian astronomer and a Catholic priest in the Jesuit order. He is known, among other things, for his experiments with pendulums and with falling bodies, for his discussion ...

in their lunar map ''Almagestum novum''. Michael van Langren, in his Lumina Austriaca Philippica of

1645 Events January–March * January 3 – The Long Parliament adopts the '' Directory for Public Worship'' in England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland, replacing the Book of Common Prayer (1559). Holy Days (other than Sundays) are no ...

, used the name "Mare Belgicum".

Landings

On February 20, 1965, the

Ranger 8 Ranger 8 was a lunar probe in the Ranger program, a robotic spacecraft series launched by NASA in the early-to-mid-1960s to obtain the first close-up images of the Moon's surface. These pictures helped select landing sites for Apollo missions an ...

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to spaceflight, fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including Telecommunications, communications, Earth observation satellite, Earth ...

was deliberately crashed into the Mare Tranquillitatis at after successfully transmitting 7,137 close-range photographs of the Moon in the final 23 minutes of its mission. Surveyor 5 landed in Mare Tranquillitatis on September 11, 1967, after transmitting 19,118 images of the Moon, and was the fifth lunar lander of the unmanned

Surveyor program The Surveyor program was a NASA program that, from June 1966 through January 1968, sent seven robotic spacecraft to the surface of the Moon. Its primary goal was to demonstrate the feasibility of soft landings on the Moon. The Surveyor craft w ...

Apollo 11

Mare Tranquillitatis was the landing site for the first manned landing on the Moon on July 20, 1969, at 20:18 UTC. After astronauts

Neil Armstrong Neil Alden Armstrong (August 5, 1930 – August 25, 2012) was an American astronaut and aeronautical engineer who became the first person to walk on the Moon in 1969. He was also a naval aviator, test pilot, and university professor. ...

and

Buzz Aldrin Buzz Aldrin (; born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr.; January 20, 1930) is an American former astronaut, engineer and fighter pilot. He made three spacewalks as pilot of the 1966 Gemini 12 mission. As the Lunar Module ''Eagle'' pilot on the 1969 ...

made a soft landing in the

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, a ...

Lunar Module The Apollo Lunar Module (LM ), originally designated the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), was the lunar lander spacecraft that was flown between lunar orbit and the Moon's surface during the United States' Apollo program. It was the first crewed ...

nicknamed ''Eagle'', Armstrong told

flight controller Flight controllers are personnel who aid space flight by working in such Mission Control Centers as NASA's Mission Control Center or ESA's European Space Operations Centre. Flight controllers work at computer consoles and use telemetry to m ...

s on Earth, "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." The landing area at has been designated '' Statio Tranquillitatis'' after Armstrong's name for it, and three small craters to the north of the base have been named Aldrin, Collins, and Armstrong in honor of the Apollo 11 crew. Apollo 11 landed at .

Bays

Along the periphery of the mare are several bay-shaped features that have been given names: Sinus Amoris, Sinus Asperitatis, Sinus Concordiae, and

Sinus Honoris Sinus Honoris (Latin ''sinus honōris'' "Bay of Honour") is located along the western edge of the Mare Tranquillitatis located on the surface of the near side of the Moon. The selenographic coordinates of this feature are 11.7° N, 17.9° E. It ...

Views

These are three views of Mare Tranquillitatis on the Moon, taken by the mapping camera of the Apollo 17 mission in 1972, facing south-southwest from an average altitude of 111 km on Revolution 36 of the mission. At the left is the east side of Mare Tranquillitatis, with the craters Franz (bottom right), Lyell (dark floor, right of center), and Taruntius (upper left). The "bay" of dark mare (basalt) at left is Sinus Concordiae, with "islands" of older, light highland material. At the right is the crater

Cauchy Baron Augustin-Louis Cauchy (, ; ; 21 August 178923 May 1857) was a French mathematician, engineer, and physicist who made pioneering contributions to several branches of mathematics, including mathematical analysis and continuum mechanics. He ...

, which lies between the

Rupes Cauchy Rupes Cauchy is a 120 km-long escarpment at on the surface of the Moon. It faces southwest, and rises about 200–300 m. It is located in the northeastern portion of the Mare Tranquillitatis, and is named after the nearby crater Cauchy. The ...

and Cauchy rille. The center photo shows the central mare with craters

Vitruvius Vitruvius (; c. 80–70 BC – after c. 15 BC) was a Roman architect and engineer during the 1st century BC, known for his multi-volume work entitled '' De architectura''. He originated the idea that all buildings should have three attribut ...

(lower right) and

Gardner Gardner may refer to: Name *Gardner (given name) *Gardner (surname) Places United States *Gardner, Colorado * Gardner, Illinois *Gardner, Kansas *Gardner, Massachusetts *Gardner, North Dakota *Gardner, Tennessee * Gardner, Wisconsin * Glen Gardn ...

(bottom center). At the horizon are lighter highlands at the southern margin of the mare, near the

landing site. The crater Jansen is visible at the edges of both the center and right photos. The right photo shows the western mare, with the craters Dawes (lower left) and the large Plinius (43 km diameter), with the Plinius Rilles in the foreground. These photos were taken within minutes of each other as the command module ''America'' orbited the Moon. The Sun elevation drops from 46 degrees at left to 30 degrees at right.

In popular culture

* In

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with their f ...

, the

Justice League The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...

's Watchtower is in the Sea of Tranquility. *

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i psych-progressive rock band Jericho Jones recorded a song named "Mare Tranquilitatas" as the opening track of their UK album release (1971) ''Junkies, Monkeys & Donkeys''. The band is also known as The Churchills. *"Mare Tranquillitatis" is the name of a composition of music by composer

Vangelis Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou ( el, Ευάγγελος Οδυσσέας Παπαθανασίου ; 29 March 1943 – 17 May 2022), known professionally as Vangelis ( ; el, Βαγγέλης, links=no ), was a Greek composer and arranger of ...

on his 1976 album, ''

Albedo 0.39 ''Albedo 0.39'' is a studio album by the Greek electronic composer Vangelis, released in 1976. It was the second album produced by Vangelis in Nemo Studios, London, which was his creative base until the late 1980s. It contrasts with his previous ...

'' and is in reference to the selenographical term. *"Sea of Tranquility" is also a song by the progressive English rock band Barclay James Harvest, included in their 1977 album '' Gone to Earth''. The composition was written by the band keyboardist Stuart "Woolly" Wolstenholme. *American singer-songwriter Tommy Shaw (best known for his work with the rock band

Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; grc, Στύξ ) is a river that forms the boundary between Earth (Gaia) and the Underworld. The rivers Acheron, Cocytus, Lethe, Phlegethon, and Styx all converge at the centre of the underworld on a great marsh, ...

) is associated with a number of references to the Sea of Tranquility. Tranquility Base Songs is his publishing company. He called his farm Tranquility Base Farms. A number of his songs mention Tranquility Base or simply "tranquility." Examples include: " Boat on the River", "And all roads lead to Tranquility Base" (from the 1979 album ''Cornerstone''), "

Everything Is Cool Everything, every-thing, or every thing is all that exists; the opposite of nothing, or its complement. It is the totality of things relevant to some subject matter. Without expressed or implied limits, it may refer to anything. The universe is ...

" – "We are a Sea of Tranquillity" (from the 1999 album ''Brave New World''), and "These Are the Times" – "We know the end will bring tranquility" (from the 2003 album ''Cyclorama''). *''Sea of Tranquillity'' is the title of a 1994 novel by Paul Russell. *

Six Finger Satellite Six Finger Satellite (a.k.a. 6FS) are an American synthesizer-based post-hardcore band, based in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. History The band formed in 1990 around a line-up of J. Ryan (singer/keyboards), John MacLean (guitar), P ...

included a song named "Sea of Tranquility, Parts 1 & 2" from their 1998 album ''Law of Ruins''. *The Dutch

stoner rock Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep ...

space rock Space rock is a music genre characterized by loose and lengthy song structures centered on instrumental textures that typically produce a hypnotic, otherworldly sound. It may feature distorted and reverberation-laden guitars, minimal drumming ...

band

35007 :''35007 is also a zip code of Alabaster, Alabama.'' 35007 (''Loose'' in beghilos) is a band from the Netherlands. The sound of 35007 has been described as stoner rock, psychedelic rock, space rock and progressive rock. History 35007 was fo ...

released a

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanistan ...

EP named ''Sea of Tranquility''. *Dutch producer

Maarten van der Vleuten Maarten van der Vleuten () is a Dutch producer, composer and recording artist born in Vught, The Netherlands in 1967. Between 1987 and 2007 he used over two dozens of aliases, producing Detroit techno, electro, house, experimental and ambient m ...

In-Existence Maarten van der Vleuten () is a Dutch producer, composer and recording artist born in Vught, The Netherlands in 1967. Between 1987 and 2007 he used over two dozens of aliases, producing Detroit techno, electro, house, experimental and ambient ...

released a song titled "Mare Tranquillitatis" on his album ''Vow Of Silence'' released on Tonefloat in 2005. * Howard Korder wrote a play called ''Sea of Tranquility''. *The Brazilian rock band from the 80s RPM mentions the Sea of Tranquillity in their hit song "Radio Pirata". * "Sea of Tranquillity" is a song by space ambient artist, John Stanford. * ''The Sea of Tranquility'' is the name of a book by Mark Haddon, author of the best-selling '' The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time''. * ''The Sea of Tranquility'' is the name of a book by Katja Millay. * ''Transmissions from The Sea of Tranquility'' is the name of the album by The Samples, released September 30, 1997. * The Houston, Texas based

progressive metal Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...

band Galactic Cowboys recorded a song named "Sea of Tranquility" as the sixth track on their 1991 self-titled debut album. * The

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier pu ...

band Jeromes Dream released a song called "Remember the Sea of Tranquility on their split 7-inch with Usurp Synapse. *In the 1987 film '' Can't Buy Me Love'', Ronald Miller (played by Patrick Dempsey) describes the Sea of Tranquility to Cindy Mancini (played by Amanda Peterson) while viewing it through a telescope on their final date. *In the anime '' Log Horizon 2'', Mare Tranquillitatis is the name of the sea inside the dimension where characters go when they die. * "Mare Tranquillitatis" is the name of a 2016 song by Adam Young. * Sea of Tranquility appears in chapter 78 of ''

Life of Pi ''Life of Pi'' is a Canadian philosophical novel by Yann Martel published in 2001. The protagonist is Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, an Indian boy from Pondicherry, India who explores issues of spirituality and metaphysics from an early age. He ...

'' by Yann Martel. * In Touhou 15, ''

Legacy of Lunatic Kingdom is a scrolling shooter game developed and published by Team Shanghai Alice. It is the 15th installment in the Touhou Project series. The story centers around the chosen heroine traveling to the Moon to stop an invasion and purification of Earth ...

'', Mare Tranquillitatis is the setting of the final two stages of the game. * In the

Alien franchise ''Alien'' is a science-fiction horror and action media franchise centered on the film series which depicts warrant officer Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) and her battles with an extraterrestrial lifeform, commonly referred to as "the Alien" ...

of movies, Weyland-Yutani (Often referred to as "The company") has a major corporate headquarters in the Sea of Tranquility. (Mentioned in the 1979 film '' Alien'' as seen on the opening screen of the "Mother" computer, among other sources) * "Sea of Tranquility" is a name of a song by Siouxsie on her album ''

Mantaray A manta ray is a large ray belonging to the genus ''Manta''. Manta Ray or Mantaray may also refer to: * ''Manta'' (platform), a South Korean digital comics platform * ''Manta Ray'' (film), a 2018 Thai film * ''Manta Ray'' (album), a 1994 album ...

''. * In the book ''

Artemis In ancient Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, Kourotrophos, care of children, and chastity. ...

'', the city Artemis is located in the Sea of Tranquility, just north of the Moltke Foothills. The

Visitor Center and reactor/smelter complex is also located in the Sea of Tranquility, 40 and 1 km north and south of Artemis respectively. * In John Adams' 1987 opera ''

Nixon in China ''Nixon in China'' is an opera in three acts by John Adams with a libretto by Alice Goodman. Adams's first opera, it was inspired by U.S. president Richard Nixon's 1972 visit to the People's Republic of China. The work premiered at the Housto ...

'', Act 1 Scene 1, Richard Nixon references "the Earth's Sea of Tranquility". * In the

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise '' Super Sentai''. Produced first by Saban Entertainment, second by BVS ...

' tenth anniversary special '' Forever Red'', Lord Zedd's Zord of Serpentera is stated to be located in the Sea of Tranquility, which is where the last known remnants of the Machine Empire have based themselves, digging Serpentera up and planning to use it to destroy Earth in revenge for the death of their leader, King Mondo. * ''

Tranquility Base Hotel and Casino ''Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino'' is the sixth studio album by English rock band Arctic Monkeys, released on 11 May 2018 by Domino Recording Company. It was written by band frontman Alex Turner in 2016 on a Steinway Vertegrand piano in hi ...

'' is a 2018 album and single by

Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Jamie Cook (guitar, keyboards), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, ...

. The name is a reference to Tranquility Base, located within the Sea of Tranquility. * In Season 1 of ''

Space Force A space force is a military branch of a nation's armed forces that conducts military operations in outer space and space warfare. The world's first space force was the Russian Space Forces, established in 1992 as an independent military servic ...

'', China lays claim to the entire Sea of Tranquility. * 2021 South Korean Netflix series '' The Silent Sea'' is named after Mare Tranquilitatis. * 'Sea of Tranquility', a song by Dutch singer-songwriter

Jojo León Jojo, JoJo or Jo Jo is a given name, surname, nickname or stage name used by several people and fictional characters, including: People with the given name, nickname or stage name Musicians *JoJo (singer) (born 1990), American R&B singer, songwri ...

on his 2013 album

Minstrel of the Moon A minstrel was an entertainer, initially in medieval Europe. It originally described any type of entertainer such as a musician, juggler, acrobat, singer or fool; later, from the sixteenth century, it came to mean a specialist entertainer w ...

. * In the ''

Rebuild of Evangelion ''Rebuild of Evangelion'', known in Japan and on Amazon Prime Video as , is a Japanese animated film series and a retelling of the original '' Neon Genesis Evangelion'' anime television series, produced by Studio Khara. Hideaki Anno served a ...

'' films, the 7th branch of NERV (Tabgha Base) is located in the Sea of Tranquility. * '' Sea of Tranquility'' is the name of a 2022 book by Emily St. John Mandel. * "Mare Tranquillitatis" is the name of a Frigate-type spaceship playable in ''

Infinite Lagrange Infinite may refer to: Mathematics * Infinite set, a set that is not a finite set *Infinity, an abstract concept describing something without any limit Music *Infinite (group), a South Korean boy band *''Infinite'' (EP), debut EP of American m ...

'', a game developed and published by

NetEase Games NetEase, Inc. () is a Chinese Internet technology company providing online services centered on content, community, communications, and commerce. The company was founded in 1997 by Ding Lei. NetEase develops and operates online PC and mobile gam ...

. * In '' Moonhaven'' (2022), the Sea of Tranquility is the site of a terrafromed colony, built to solve the problems of Earth.

Gallery

File:Mare Tranquillitatis map.jpg, Map of the Sea of Tranquility, showing the landing sites of

, Apollo 16, Apollo 17, and Surveyor 5. To the southeast is

Mare Fecunditatis Mare Fecunditatis (Latin ''fēcunditātis'', the "Sea of Fecundity" or "Sea of Fertility") is a lunar mare in the eastern half of the visible Moon. The mare has a maximum diameter of 840 km. __NOTOC__ Description The Fecunditatis basin form ...

, to the northeast is

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 C ...

, to the northwest is

Mare Serenitatis Mare Serenitatis (Latin ''serēnitātis'', the "Sea of Serenity") is a lunar mare located to the east of Mare Imbrium on the Moon. Its diameter is . Geology Mare Serenitatis is located within the Serenitatis basin, which is of the Nectarian ...

, and to the south is

Mare Nectaris Mare Nectaris (Latin ''nectaris'', the "Sea of Nectar") is a small lunar mare or sea (a volcanic lava plain noticeably darker than the rest of the Moon's surface) located south of Mare Tranquillitatis southwest of Mare Fecunditatis, on the ne ...

. File:AP11 FINAL APPROACH.ogv,

lands the Apollo 11 Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on the Moon at Mare Tranquillitatis, July 20, 1969, creating Tranquility Base. Starts approximately 6200 feet from the surface. File:Buzz salutes the U.S. Flag.jpg,

salutes the U.S. flag on Mare Tranquillitatis during Apollo 11 in 1969. File:Mare Tranquillitatis pit crater.jpg, Spectacular high Sun view of the Mare Tranquillitatis pit crater revealing boulders on an otherwise smooth floor. Image is 400 meters wide, north is up, NAC M126710873R.

References

{{Portal bar, Astronomy, Stars, Spaceflight, Outer space, Solar System Tranquillitatis Apollo 11 Tranquillitatis Tranquillitatis Articles containing video clips