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Coordinates | 63°24′S45°10′W / 63.40°S 45.16°W Coordinates: 63°24′S45°10′W / 63.40°S 45.16°W |
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Diameter | 72 km |
Depth | 3.8 km |
Colongitude | 45° at sunrise |
Eponym | Mario Bettinus |
Bettinus is a lunar impact crater located near the southwest limb. Due to its location, the crater has a distinctly oval shape because of foreshortening. To the south of the rim is the similar-sized crater Kircher, and to the northwest is the slightly smaller Zucchius. From the west to the southwest, closer to the limb, is the giant formation Bailly.
Lunar craters are impact craters on Earth's Moon. The Moon's surface has many craters, almost all of which were formed by impacts.
An impact crater is an approximately circular depression in the surface of a planet, moon, or other solid body in the Solar System or elsewhere, formed by the hypervelocity impact of a smaller body. In contrast to volcanic craters, which result from explosion or internal collapse, impact craters typically have raised rims and floors that are lower in elevation than the surrounding terrain. Impact craters range from small, simple, bowl-shaped depressions to large, complex, multi-ringed impact basins. Meteor Crater is a well-known example of a small impact crater on Earth.
Kircher is a lunar impact crater that is located in the south-southwestern part of the Moon, near the southern limb. In this position the crater appears foreshortened when viewed from the Earth. It is less than one crater diameter due south of the crater Bettinus, and is nearly attached to Wilson along the south-southeast rim of Kircher.
The rim of Bettinus is only somewhat worn, with an inner wall that is wider to the northwest. The interior floor is relatively flat, with a central rise that is offset to the west of the midpoint. There is a small crater along the eastern rim.
Bettinus lies due south of the Schiller-Zucchius Basin.
The Schiller-Zucchius Basin is a Pre-Nectarian impact basin on the near side of the moon. It is named after the elongated crater Schiller at the northeast margin and fresh crater Zucchius near the southwest margin. This basin has received the unofficial designation 'Schiller Annular Plain' among lunar observers.
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Bettinus.
Anaximander is a lunar impact crater that is located near the northwest limb of the Moon. It is joined at the northern rim by the crater Carpenter, a younger and better-defined formation. To the southeast is the much larger J. Herschel, a formation of the variety known as a walled plain.
Zucchius is a prominent lunar impact crater located near the southwestern limb. Because of its location the crater appears oblong-shaped due to foreshortening. It lies just to the south-southwest of the crater Segner, and northeast of the much larger walled plain Bailly. To the southeast is Bettinus, a formation only slightly larger than Zucchius.
Segner is a lunar impact crater located near the southwestern limb of the Moon, to the northeast of the giant walled plain Bailly. The crater Zucchius is a few kilometers to the south-southwest of the rim, and to the north east lies the unusual formation Schiller. The smaller crater Weigel is located to the east.
Nasmyth is a lunar impact crater located near the southwestern limb of the Moon. It is attached to the southeast rim of the flooded crater Wargentin, and the southern half is overlain by the larger Phocylides.
Phocylides is a lunar impact crater located near the southwest rim of the Moon. It overlays the south rim of the crater Nasmyth to the north. To the northwest is the unusual plateau formation of Wargentin. Eastward is the merged formation Schiller, and in the southwest lies Pingré.
Faraday is a lunar impact crater in the southern highlands of the Moon. It was named after British chemist and physicist Michael Faraday. It lies across the southeast rim of the larger crater Stöfler, and the northwest rim of Faraday forms a wide rampart across the otherwise flat floor of Stöfler. To the east of Faraday is Maurolycus.
Blancanus is a lunar impact crater located in the rugged southern region of the Moon, to the southwest of the walled plain Clavius. To the northwest lies the comparably sized crater Scheiner, and south-southwest of Blancanus is the worn Klaproth.
Abel is an ancient lunar impact crater that lies near the southeast limb of the Moon's near side. It is located to the south of the crater Barnard, at the northwest edge of the Mare Australe.
Appleton is a heavily eroded lunar impact crater that lies in the northern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. To the northwest are the craters Von Neumann and Campbel. The smaller Golovin lies to the northeast, while further to the southwest is the Mare Moscoviense.
Boss is a lunar impact crater that is located along the northeast rim of the Moon's near side. Due to its location, the crater is viewed from the side by observers on the Earth, and its visibility is subject to libration effects.
Baillaud is a lunar impact crater that is located near the north limb of the Moon. The rim of the crater has been eroded and worn by a long history of impacts, leaving a hilly ridge surrounding the interior. The crater Euctemon is intruding into the rim to the northeast, and the rim bulges outward to the northwest. At the south end of the crater is a gap connecting to the lava-flooded surface to the south.
Barrow is an old lunar impact crater that is located near the northern limb of the Moon. It lies between the crater Goldschmidt to the northwest and the irregular formation Meton to the northeast. To the southwest is W. Bond.
Rost is a lunar impact crater that is located in the southwestern part of the Moon, to the southeast of the elongated formation Schiller. To the southeast of Rost is the larger crater Scheiner. West-southwest of this formation is the smaller Weigel.
Ellison is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon from the Earth. It is located just beyond the northwest limb of the Moon, to the southwest of the large walled plain Poczobutt. Due west of Ellison is the crater Coulomb.
Berkner is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, just past the western limb. It is attached to the east-southeast rim of the crater Parenago. Just to the south is the Robertson, and to the southeast is Helberg.
Blackett is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, behind the southwest limb. It lies beyond the southeast outer ring of the immense Mare Orientale basin. The formation of that major feature has left Blackett deeply marked with ridge features trending from the northwest. Much of the crater has been shaped by the ejecta from Mare Orientale, particularly along the western half of the crater.
Demonax is a lunar impact crater near the southern limb of the Moon. This location makes the crater difficult to observe due to foreshortening. The crater is also illuminated at a very low angle, when it is in the sunlit side. Demonax lies just to the north of the crater Scott, one of the south polar formations. To the north-northwest is Boguslawsky.
Cleostratus is a lunar impact crater near the northwest limb of the Moon. It lies to the northeast of the crater Xenophanes, and west-southwest of the prominent Pythagoras. From the Earth this crater appears highly elongated due to foreshortening.
Epigenes is a lunar impact crater that is located in the north part of the Moon, and is sufficiently close to the northern limb to appear significantly foreshortened from the Earth. It lies just to the northwest of the remains of the walled plain W. Bond. Due north of Epigenes is Goldschmidt, and the ruined crater Birmingham lies just to the southwest.
Cassegrain is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, beyond the southeastern limb. It lies to the southeast of the larger crater Lebedev, and to the northeast of the comparably-sized Priestley.
Ewen Adair Whitaker was a British-born astronomer who specialized in lunar studies. During World War II he was engaged in quality control for the lead sheathing of hollow cables strung under the English Channel as part of the "Pipe Line Under The Ocean" Project (PLUTO) to supply gasoline to Allied military vehicles in France. After the war, he obtained a position at the Royal Greenwich Observatory working on the UV spectra of stars, but became interested in lunar studies. As a sideline, Whitaker drew and published the first accurate chart of the South Polar area of the Moon in 1954, and served as director of the Lunar Section of the British Astronomical Association.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research.
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The USGS is a fact-finding research organization with no regulatory responsibility.