Dale (crater)

Last updated
Dale
Dale crater AS12-54-7988.jpg
Apollo 12 image
Coordinates 9°36′S82°54′E / 9.6°S 82.9°E / -9.6; 82.9 Coordinates: 9°36′S82°54′E / 9.6°S 82.9°E / -9.6; 82.9
Diameter 22 km
Depth Unknown
Colongitude 278° at sunrise
Eponym Henry H. Dale

Dale is a small lunar impact crater located in the far eastern part of the Moon's near side, to the south of the Mare Smythii. It lies to the southeast of the larger crater Kastner and northeast of Ansgarius. The crater is located in a part of the lunar surface that is subject to libration, which can hide it from view for periods of time.

Lunar craters

Lunar craters are impact craters on Earth's Moon. The Moon's surface has many craters, almost all of which were formed by impacts.

Impact crater Circular depression on a solid astronomical body formed by a hypervelocity impact of a smaller object

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.

Moon Earths natural satellite

Earth's Moon is an astronomical body that orbits the planet and acts as its only permanent natural satellite. It is the fifth-largest satellite in the Solar System, and the largest among planetary satellites relative to the size of the planet that it orbits. The Moon is, after Jupiter's satellite Io, the second-densest satellite in the Solar System among those whose densities are known.

It is a relatively shallow and insignificant crater formation with a somewhat eroded outer rim. A smaller crater lies across the south-southwestern rim, creating a break into the interior. The rim is somewhat lower along the north edge than elsewhere, and the feature is marked only by a few tiny craterlets.

Related Research Articles

Abul Wafa (crater) impact crater

Abul Wafa is an impact crater located near the lunar equator on the far side of the Moon, named after the Persian mathematician and astronomer Abu al-Wafa' Buzjani. To the east are the crater pair Ctesibius and Heron. In the northeast lies the larger crater King, and to the southwest is Vesalius.

Abel (crater) Lunar crater

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.

Alekhin (crater) lunar crater

Alekhin is a lunar impact crater that is located on the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the north of the crater Zeeman, and south-southeast of Fizeau. To the west lies Crommelin, and east-southeast is Doerfel.

Encke (crater) impact crater

Encke is a lunar impact crater that is located on the western edge of the Mare Insularum, to the south-southeast of the crater Kepler. The small crater Kunowsky lies to the east-southeast on the mare.

Arrhenius (lunar crater) lunar crater

Arrhenius is a lunar impact crater that is located just on the far side of the Moon, near the southwest limb. In this location the vicinity of the crater can be viewed during favorable librations, although it is viewed from on edge. To the south-southeast is the worn crater Blanchard, and De Roy lies further to the west.

Azophi (crater) impact crater

Azophi is a lunar impact crater that lies in the rugged south-central highlands of the Moon. The crater is named after the 10th-century Persian astronomer Abd Al-Rahman Al Sufi, also known by his western name, Azophi. The northwest rim is attached to the slightly smaller crater Abenezra, to the east-southeast is the large and irregular Sacrobosco, and to the west-southwest is the slightly crater Playfair.

Büsching (crater) impact crater

Büsching is a lunar impact crater that is located in the crater-covered southern highlands of the Moon. It was named after German geographer Anton F. Büsching. The similar-sized crater Buch is located adjacent to its southwestern rim, and further to the southwest lies Maurolycus.

Bell (crater) lunar crater

Bell is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, just past the western limb. It lies in an area of terrain that is marked by many small craters, a number of which are satellite craters of Bell listed in the table below. Bell lies within two crater diameters of Laue to the north, and to the west of the smaller Helberg.

Barringer (lunar crater)

Barringer is a lunar impact crater that is located on the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It is attached to the north-northeastern rim of the walled basin named Apollo, and lies to the southeast of Plummer. South of Barringer, on the floor of the Apollo basin, is the crater Scobee.

Barbier (crater) lunar crater

Barbier is a lunar impact crater that is located on the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It forms a matched pair with Cyrano to the north-northwest, and it lies to the southeast of the huge walled plain Gagarin. Southwest of Barbier is the crater Sierpinski, and to the southeast is the Mare Ingenii.

Blanchard (crater) lunar crater

Blanchard is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, just behind the southwestern limb. It lies to the south-southwest of the crater Arrhenius, and northwest of Pilâtre. Further to the south is the rugged terrain to the north of the walled plain Hausen.

Brouwer (crater) lunar crater

Brouwer is a large lunar impact crater that is located in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. Intruding into the western rim of Brouwer is the younger and somewhat smaller crater Langmuir. Further to the east-southeast is the larger walled plain Blackett.

Casatus (crater) impact crater

Casatus is a lunar impact crater that is located near the southern limb of the Moon. The north-northeast rim of the crater overlies a portion of the slightly larger crater Klaproth. Along the western rim, Casatus A intrudes somewhat into the interior, producing an inward-bowing rim. To the southeast of Casatus is Newton.

Chebyshev (crater) lunar crater

Chebyshev is a large lunar impact crater that lies in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. The somewhat smaller crater Langmuir is intruding into the east-southeastern rim of Chebyshev, forming a chain of large craters with Brouwer on Langmuir's eastern rim.

Chadwick (crater) lunar crater

Chadwick is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon's surface, just beyond the southwestern limb. It is located to the northwest of the crater De Roy, and was previously designated De Roy X before being given its current name by the IAU. This region of the lunar surface lies at the southern end of the ejecta blanket that surrounds the Mare Orientale impact basin.

Coriolis (crater) lunar crater

Coriolis is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. The crater floor is bisected by the lunar equator, and it lies about three crater diameters northwest of the crater Daedalus.

Cichus (crater) impact crater

Cichus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southwestern part of the Moon, at the eastern edge of Palus Epidemiarum. Just to the northeast and nearly contacting the rim is the lava-flooded crater remnant Weiss. The crater is named after Italian astronomer Cecco d'Ascoli.

Chandler (crater) impact crater

Chandler is a lunar impact crater in the northern hemisphere, on the Moon's far side. It lies to the southeast of the large walled plain D'Alembert, and southeast of the slightly smaller Chernyshev crater.

Espin (crater) lunar crater

Espin is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, just beyond the northeastern limb. It lies to the west-southwest of the larger crater Seyfert, and northwest of Deutsch.

Evdokimov (crater) lunar crater

Evdokimov is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the east of the crater Evershed, and west-southwest of Gadomski. This is a worn and eroded feature with a somewhat indistinct outer rim that is little more than a slight ridge in the surface. The rim is better formed along the western and eastern sides. A small crater with a relatively high albedo lies along the inner wall to the northeast, and is surrounded by a small, bright skirt of ejecta. The interior floor is nearly featureless, with only a few indistinct small crater rims marking the surface.

References

Ewen Whitaker British astronomer

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.

NASA space-related agency of the United States government

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.

United States Geological Survey Scientific agency of the United States government

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.