 Apollo 12 image | |
| Coordinates | 9°24′S87°12′E / 9.4°S 87.2°E Coordinates: 9°24′S87°12′E / 9.4°S 87.2°E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 29 km |
| Depth | Unknown |
| Colongitude | 273° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Friedrich G. Houtermans |
Houtermans is a lunar impact crater that is located beside the eastern limb of the Moon, in the region of the surface where visibility is affected by libration. It lies to the east of the crater Kreiken, and south of the crater pairing of Helmert and Kao.
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.
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.
This is an elongated formation created by two or more merged crater formations. The crater formation is twice as wide in longitude as it is in latitude, with the long axis oriented toward the west-northwest. The rim is worn and eroded, with a tiny crater along the northernmost part of the rim, and an inward bulge along the northern half of the inner rim about 60% of the distance from west to east. The interior floor is relatively featureless, with only a few tiny craterlets.
Longitude, is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east–west position of a point on the Earth's surface, or the surface of a celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek letter lambda (λ). Meridians connect points with the same longitude. By convention, one of these, the Prime Meridian, which passes through the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, England, was allocated the position of 0° longitude. The longitude of other places is measured as the angle east or west from the Prime Meridian, ranging from 0° at the Prime Meridian to +180° eastward and −180° westward. Specifically, it is the angle between a plane through the Prime Meridian and a plane through both poles and the location in question.
In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the north–south position of a point on the Earth's surface. Latitude is an angle which ranges from 0° at the Equator to 90° at the poles. Lines of constant latitude, or parallels, run east–west as circles parallel to the equator. Latitude is used together with longitude to specify the precise location of features on the surface of the Earth. On its own, the term latitude should be taken to be the geodetic latitude as defined below. Briefly, geodetic latitude at a point is the angle formed by the vector perpendicular to the ellipsoidal surface from that point, and the equatorial plane. Also defined are six auxiliary latitudes which are used in special applications.
