Furnerius is a large

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 in the southeast part of 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 of ...

, in the area close to the southeastern limb of the nearside or visible Moon. Because of its location, the crater appears oval in shape due to foreshortening but is actually nearly circular. Notable nearby craters include Stevinus to the northwest and Fraunhofer to the south-southwest. Farther to the northwest is the crater Snellius and the

Vallis Snellius Vallis Snellius is a linear valley on the near side of the Moon. It is located in the rugged southeastern part of the visible surface, to the south of the Mare Fecunditatis. This feature is radial to the Mare Nectaris basin to the west-northwest, ...

crater valley. The rim of Furnerius is worn and battered, with multiple impacts along its length and notches along the base. Much of the wall now rises only slightly above the surrounding terrain, with the lowest sections to the north and south. However the northern wall rises to a maximum elevation of 3.5 km. The interior floor is marked by fourteen notable craters, the most notable being Furnerius B in the northern half which has a central rise. Dark patches on the floor indicate areas resurfaced by

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

. In the northeast part of the floor is 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 wid ...

designated Rima Furnerius. This cleft is about 50 kilometers in length and follows a course to the northwest where it reaches the north rim of the crater. In Johann H. Schröter's lunar study of 1791, he sketched this crater with a low dome in the southern half. This feature has proven difficult to identify in subsequent lunar photographs and observations. The

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ese

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named

Hiten Hiten may refer to: * Hiten (name), Indian given name * Hiten (spacecraft), Japanese lunar probe *Tennin , which may include , , and the specifically female version, the , are a divine kind of spiritual beings found in Japanese Buddhism, the ...

crash-landed in the vicinity of this crater in 1993.

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 Furnerius.

References

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External links

The Lunar Crater Furnerius and the Mystery of Schroters Dome
(accessed 9/15/05) {{Craters on the Moon: C-F Impact craters on the Moon