Hertzsprung (crater)

Last updated
Hertzsprung
Hertzsprung (LRO).png
LRO WAC mosaic
Coordinates 1°22′N128°40′W / 1.37°N 128.66°W / 1.37; -128.66
Diameter 570 km (350 mi) [1]
Depth Unknown
Colongitude 140° at sunrise
Eponym Ejnar Hertzsprung

Hertzsprung is an enormous lunar impact crater, or impact basin, that is located on the far side of the Moon, beyond the western limb. In dimension, this formation is larger than several of the lunar mare areas on the near side. It lies in the northwestern fringe of the blast radius of the Mare Orientale impact basin. Nearby craters of note include Michelson across the northeast rim, Vavilov across the western rim, and Lucretius to the southeast.

Contents

Hertzsprung is a basin of Nectarian age. [2]

The outer rim of Hertzsprung has been damaged and modified by several notable impacts (mentioned above) and a number of smaller craters. A chain of small craters, designated Catena Lucretius, begins at the southeastern outer rim and proceeds toward the west-northwest until it connects with the perimeter of the inner basin. This inner area is less rough than the outer ring of the floor, and is surrounded by a circular range of ridges. The inner perimeter is also pierced by several craters, including Hertzsprung D along the eastern portion and Hertzsprung S on the western side. Nor is the interior of the inner basin free from impacts, including K, H, X, and L, listed in the table below.

At the center of the basin is a mass concentration (mascon), or gravitational high. The mascon was first identified by Doppler tracking of the Lunar Prospector spacecraft. [3]

The equator of the Moon passes through this formation, being located to the south of the midpoint and cutting through the central basin.

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 Hertzsprung.

HertzsprungCoordinatesDiameter, km
D 3°26′N126°12′W / 3.43°N 126.20°W / 3.43; -126.20 (Hertzsprung D) 48
H 1°16′S125°09′W / 1.26°S 125.15°W / -1.26; -125.15 (Hertzsprung H) 20
K 0°40′S128°29′W / 0.67°S 128.48°W / -0.67; -128.48 (Hertzsprung K) 27
L 0°13′N128°42′W / 0.22°N 128.70°W / 0.22; -128.70 (Hertzsprung L) 35
M 7°33′S129°47′W / 7.55°S 129.79°W / -7.55; -129.79 (Hertzsprung M) 36
P 0°08′S130°14′W / 0.14°S 130.24°W / -0.14; -130.24 (Hertzsprung P) 22
R 0°16′S132°48′W / 0.27°S 132.80°W / -0.27; -132.80 (Hertzsprung R) 30
S 0°27′N133°24′W / 0.45°N 133.40°W / 0.45; -133.40 (Hertzsprung S) 49
V 5°04′N134°10′W / 5.07°N 134.17°W / 5.07; -134.17 (Hertzsprung V) 40
X 3°41′N130°05′W / 3.68°N 130.08°W / 3.68; -130.08 (Hertzsprung X) 24
Y 8°46′N131°59′W / 8.77°N 131.99°W / 8.77; -131.99 (Hertzsprung Y) 25

2022 Long March 3C third stage impact

The unexpected double crater New rocket body impact double crater on the Moon.png
The unexpected double crater

In February 2022, after a mis-identification, it was announced that a Long March 3C third stage from the 2014 Chang'e 5 T1 mission, should have crashed in or near the crater on 4 March 2022, 12:25:58 UTC, at latitude +5.18, east longitude 233.55, plus or minus a few seconds and a few kilometers. [4] Confirmation of the impact could be acquired through satellites like the LRO. The event showed how hard it is to track small objects in deep space. Manfred Memorial Moon Mission, a private moon probe developed by LuxSpace was attached to the third stage and also crashed with it.

In June 2022 NASA released a picture of the crater produced by the purported rocket body. Unusually it is a double lobed crater. Previous craters created by rocket bodies on the Moon have been large single craters. It was found near the Hertzsprung D crater at coordinates (5.226 degrees north, 234.486 degrees east, 1,863 meters elevation). [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aitken (crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Aitken is a large lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, named for Robert Grant Aitken, an American astronomer specializing in binary stellar systems. It is located to the southeast of the crater Heaviside, and north of the unusual formation Van de Graaff. Attached to the southwest rim is Vertregt. To the southeast is the smaller Bergstrand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grimaldi (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Grimaldi is a large basin located near the western limb of the Moon. It lies to the southwest of the Oceanus Procellarum, and southeast of the crater Riccioli. Between Oceanus Procellarum is Damoiseau, and to the north is Lohrmann.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antoniadi (lunar crater)</span> Lunar surface depression

Antoniadi is a large lunar impact crater that lies on the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. The crater intrudes into the southeastern rim of the crater Minnaert, a slightly smaller formation that is significantly more eroded. Attached to the eastern rim of Antoniadi is Numerov, another large, ancient crater similar to Minnaert. Due south of Antoniadi is the small crater Brashear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Korolev (lunar crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Korolev is a large lunar impact crater of the walled plain or basin type. It is a basin of Nectarian age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apollo (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Apollo, also called the Apollo basin, is an enormous impact crater located in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. This formation dwarfs the large crater Oppenheimer that is located next to the western rim. The crater Barringer lies across the northern wall. To the southeast is the crater Anders, and Kleymenov is just to the east of the rim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hale (lunar crater)</span> Lunar surface depression

Hale is a relatively young lunar impact crater that is located on the southern limb of the Moon. Over half the crater lies on the far side of the Moon, and from the Earth this formation is viewed from the side. Thus the crater must be viewed from orbit in order to discern much detail. The nearest crater of note is Wexler to the north. To the east on the far side is the huge walled plain Schrödinger, and to the southwest is the crater Demonax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schrödinger (crater)</span> Large lunar impact crater of the form traditionally called a walled plain

Schrödinger is a large lunar impact crater of the form traditionally called a walled plain and is named after Erwin Schrödinger. It is located near the south lunar pole on the far side of the Moon, and can only be viewed from orbit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Von Kármán (lunar crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Von Kármán is a large lunar impact crater that is located in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. The crater is about 186 km (116 mi) in diameter and lies within an immense impact crater known as the South Pole–Aitken basin of roughly 2,500 km (1,600 mi) in diameter and 13 km (8.1 mi) deep. Von Kármán is the site of the first soft-landing on the lunar far side by the Chinese Chang'e 4 spacecraft on 3 January 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chaffee (crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Chaffee is a lunar impact crater that is located in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It lies within the huge walled plain Apollo, and is one of several craters in that formation named for astronauts and people associated with the Apollo program. This basin is a double-ringed formation, and the crater Chaffee is situated across the southwest part of the inner ring. The ridge from this ring extends northward from the northern rim of Chaffee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cockcroft (crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Cockcroft is a lunar impact crater that is situated on the far side of the Moon from the Earth, so that it has only been observed and photographed from orbit. It lies to the northeast of the larger crater Fitzgerald, and southeast of Evershed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fersman (crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Fersman is a large lunar impact crater on the Moon's far side. It lies to the east of the crater Poynting, and west-northwest of Weyl. To the south is the huge walled plain Hertzsprung.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fridman (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Fridman is the remains of a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies due south of the huge walled plain Hertzsprung, and is attached to the northeastern rim of the crater Ioffe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kekulé (crater)</span> Lunar impact crater

Kekulé is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies just to the west-southwest of the larger crater Poynting, on the edge of the ejecta skirt surrounding the walled plain Hertzsprung to the southeast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stefan (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Stefan is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon, just beyond the northwestern limb. Attached to the western rim is the slightly smaller crater Wegener, and close to the eastern rim is Rynin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wan-Hoo (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Wan-Hoo is a lunar impact crater that is located on the Moon's far side, and it cannot be seen directly from the Earth. It lies to the southwest of the huge walled plain Hertzsprung, within the outer skirt of ejecta. Just to the south-southwest of Wan-Hoo is the larger crater Paschen, and a little over two crater diameters to the northwest is Sechenov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucretius (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Lucretius is an impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It is located to the southeast of the huge walled plain Hertzsprung, within the outer skirt of ejecta that surrounds that impact feature. To the southwest of Lucretius lies Fridman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vavilov (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Vavilov is a prominent impact crater that is located to the west of the walled plain Hertzsprung. It is located on the far side of the Moon and cannot be viewed directly from the Earth. About a crater diameter to the northwest is the smaller Chaucer, and farther to the southwest is Sechenov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meitner (lunar crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Meitner is an impact crater on the far side of the Moon, behind the eastern limb. It lies to the northwest of the crater Kondratyuk, and about a crater diameter to the west of Langemak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelson (crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Michelson is a crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies along the northeastern outer rim of the huge walled plain Hertzsprung, and to the southwest of the crater Kolhörster.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharonov (lunar crater)</span> Crater on the Moon

Sharonov is a lunar impact crater that lies on the Moon's far side. It is located to the southeast of the crater Anderson, and to the southwest of the ray-covered Virtanen. To the south-southeast of Sharonov lies Valier.

References

  1. Stockstill, K. R.; Spudis, P. D. (March 16–20, 1998). Geology and Deposits of the Hertzsprung Basin, Lunar Far Side (PDF). 29th Annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. Houston, TX (published March 1998). Bibcode:1998LPI....29.1236S.
  2. The geologic history of the Moon. USGS Professional Paper 1348. By Don E. Wilhelms, John F. McCauley, and Newell J. Trask. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington: 1987. Table 9-3.
  3. A. S. Konopliv; A. B. Binder; L. L. Hood; A. B. Kucinskas; W. L. Sjogren & J. G. Williams (1998). "Improved Gravity Field of the Moon from Lunar Prospector". Science. 281 (5382): 1476–1480. Bibcode:1998Sci...281.1476K. doi: 10.1126/science.281.5382.1476 . PMID   9727968.
  4. "Pseudo-MPEC for 2014-065B = NORAD 40284 = Chang'e 5-T1 booster = lunar impactor on 2022 Mar 04". projectpluto.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  5. Garner, Rob (2022-06-23). "Rocket Impact Site on Moon Seen by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter". NASA. Retrieved 2022-06-28.