Daedalus (crater)

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Daedalus
Lunar crater Daedalus.jpg
The lunar farside crater Daedalus from Apollo 11 (NASA photo)
Coordinates 5°54′S179°24′E / 5.9°S 179.4°E / -5.9; 179.4 Coordinates: 5°54′S179°24′E / 5.9°S 179.4°E / -5.9; 179.4
Diameter 93 km
Depth 3.0 km
Colongitude 181° at sunrise
Eponym Daedalus
Lunar Orbiter 2 image Daedalus crater 2033 med.jpg
Lunar Orbiter 2 image
Closeup of the interior from Apollo 11 Daedalus crater AS11-41-6151.jpg
Closeup of the interior from Apollo 11

Daedalus is a prominent crater located near the center of the far side of the Moon. The inner wall is terraced, and there is a cluster of central peaks on the relatively flat floor. Because of its location (shielded from radio emissions from the Earth), it has been proposed as the site of a future giant radio telescope, which would be scooped out of the crater itself, much like the Arecibo radio telescope, but on a vastly larger scale.

Contents

The crater is named after Daedalus of Greek myth. It is pictured in famous photographs taken by the Apollo 11 astronauts. In contemporary sources it was called Crater 308 (this was a temporary IAU designation that preceded the establishment of far-side lunar nomenclature). [1]

Nearby craters of note include Icarus to the east and Racah to the south. Less than a crater diameter to the north-northeast is Lipskiy.

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 Daedalus.

DaedalusLatitudeLongitudeDiameter
B4.1° S179.8° W23 km
C4.1° S178.9° W68 km
G6.6° S177.4° W33 km
K8.3° S178.5° W24 km
M8.1° S179.5° E13 km
R7.7° S175.2° E41 km
S6.8° S172.9° E20 km
U4.2° S174.9° E30 km
W3.5° S177.5° E70 km

See also

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