J. Herschel (crater)

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J. Herschel
J. Herschel crater 4164 h1 4164 h2.jpg
Coordinates 62°00′N42°00′W / 62.0°N 42.0°W / 62.0; -42.0 Coordinates: 62°00′N42°00′W / 62.0°N 42.0°W / 62.0; -42.0
Diameter 154 km
Colongitude 46° at sunrise
Eponym John Herschel

J. Herschel is a large lunar impact crater of the variety termed a walled plain crater. The crater is named after British astronomer John Herschel. [1] It is located in the northern part of the Moon's surface, and so appears foreshortened when viewed from the Earth. The southeastern rim of J. Herschel forms part of the edge of the Mare Frigoris lunar mare. To the northwest is the crater Anaximander. Bordering the northern rim is a large, unnamed lunar plain. Just to the south is the small crater Horrebow.

Contents

The rim of this crater has been heavily eroded, to the point where it is frequently described as "considerably disintegrated". The remaining rim survives as a ring of ridges that have been resculpted by subsequent impacts. The interior floor is relatively level, but irregular and marked by a multitude of tiny impacts. The most notable of these are the satellite craters C, D, K, and L, listed in the table below. Horrebow A is attached to the southern rim of the crater, and is overlapped along its southwest rim by Horrebow.

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 J. Herschel.

J. HerschelLatitudeLongitudeDiameter
B59.9° N38.8° W7 km
C62.3° N39.9° W12 km
D60.4° N38.0° W10 km
F58.8° N35.4° W19 km
K62.9° N39.3° W8 km
L61.0° N40.0° W7 km
M57.3° N32.9° W9 km
N60.0° N32.8° W7 km
P63.5° N32.8° W6 km
R62.5° N30.6° W9 km

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anaximander (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eddington (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Eddington is the lava-flooded remnant of a lunar impact crater, located on the western part of Oceanus Procellarum. The western rim is attached to the wall of the walled plain Struve. To the east-southeast is the smaller but prominent crater Seleucus. South of Eddington is Krafft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Finsch (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Finsch is a relatively small lunar impact crater in the mid-part of Mare Serenitatis that has been almost completely covered by the mare, forming a ghost crater in the lava plain. It was named after German zoologist Otto Finsch. It is located to the south-southeast of the crater Sarabhai and northeast of Bessel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deslandres (crater)</span> Impact crater

Deslandres is the heavily worn and distorted remains of a lunar impact crater. It is located to the southeast of the Mare Nubium, in the rugged southern highlands of the Moon. In dimension it is the third-largest crater formation on the visible Moon, being beaten only by Clavius and by the 303-kilometer-diameter walled plain Bailly. The northern and eastern parts of the floor display a relatively level surface, but it is pock-marked with numerous craters. There is a small region of mare material, due to basaltic lava, along the eastern interior floor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C. Herschel (crater)</span> Lunar crater

C. Herschel is a small lunar impact crater that lies on the western part of Mare Imbrium. It is named after German astronomer Caroline Herschel. It is a circular, bowl-shaped formation that has not undergone significant erosion. The interior floor has the same low albedo as the surrounding lunar mare. To the south-southwest is the similar crater Heis. C. Herschel lies on a wrinkle ridge of the lunar mare named the Dorsum Heim.

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

Herschel is a lunar impact crater located just to the north of the walled plain Ptolemaeus. Its diameter is 39 km. It was named after German-born British astronomer William Herschel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfraganus (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Alfraganus is a small lunar impact crater that lies in the rugged highland region to the southwest of the Mare Tranquillitatis. It is named after Persian astronomer Alfraganus. Northwest of Alfraganus is the crater Delambre, and to the south is the irregular Zöllner. The rim of Alfraganus is circular and retains a sharp edge that has not received a significant amount of wear due to subsequent impacts. The interior floor is roughly half the diameter of the crater rim.

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

Bohr is a lunar impact crater that is located near the western lunar limb, in the area that is affected by librations. It is attached to the southwestern rim of the larger, eroded Vasco da Gama formation, and to the southeast of the crater Einstein. The crater was observed for the first time in 1963, by Arthus and Ewen Whitaker in the book Rectified Lunar Atlas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">De La Rue (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

De La Rue is the remnant of a lunar impact crater, or possibly several merged craters, creating a formation sometimes called a walled plain. It lies in the northeastern part of the Moon on the near side, and so appears foreshortened due to its location. This formation lies to the north-northwest of the prominent crater Endymion, just beyond the eastern extreme of Mare Frigoris. The crater Strabo intrudes into the northern part of De La Rue's northern rim, and the smaller Thales is attached to the northwestern part of the wall.

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South (lunar crater)</span> Feature on the moon

South is a large lunar impact crater that is located in the northwest part of the Moon. Most of the southern wall of this crater is joined to the Sinus Roris bay of the Oceanus Procellarum, with the southeast rim facing Mare Frigoris. Attached to the northwest of the formation is the larger walled plain Babbage. Just to the northeast is the crater Robinson, and farther to the northeast is another walled plain, J. Herschel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horrebow (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Horrebow is a lunar impact crater that is located along the northern shore of Mare Frigoris, just to the south of the walled plain J. Herschel. To the west of Horrebow is the crater Robinson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darwin (lunar crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Darwin is a lunar impact crater of the type categorised as a walled plain. It lies in the southeastern part of the Moon, and is sufficiently close to the limb to appear significantly foreshortened when viewed from the Earth. Attached to its southern rim is Lamarck. To the northeast is the dark-floored crater Crüger.

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

Chrétien is a lunar impact crater that is located in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon from the Earth. It lies due south of the Mare Ingenii, one of the few maria on the Moon's far side. The crater lies in the midpoint between the craters Garavito to the west-southwest and Oresme to the east-northeast, both of these being somewhat smaller than Chrétien.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cannizzaro (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Cannizzaro is a lunar impact crater that is located on the Moon's far side as seen from the Earth, just beyond the northwestern limb. It lies in a region of the surface that is sometimes brought into view due to the effects of libration, but not much detail can be seen since this feature is viewed from the side. The crater lies across the southwestern rim of the much larger-walled plain Poczobutt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robinson (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Robinson is a small lunar impact crater that lies to the southwest of the large walled plain J. Herschel. It is located in the continental terrain to the north of the Mare Frigoris, in the northwestern part of the Moon's near side. To the southwest is another walled plain, South.

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

Elvey is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It is located near the northern edge of the blanket of ejecta that surrounds the Mare Orientale impact basin. To the north of Elvey is the smaller crater Nobel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erro (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Erro is a lunar impact crater that lies beyond the eastern limb of the Moon, on the far side as seen from the Earth. It lies along the eastern fringes of the uneven plain that joins Mare Marginis to the northwest with Mare Smythii to the west-southwest. This part of the surface is sometimes brought into sight of observers on the Earth due to libration. However even at such times not much detail can be seen, as the surface is viewed from the edge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fridman (crater)</span> Feature 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">Mohorovičić (crater)</span> Feature on the moon

Mohorovičić is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the southwest of the larger crater Doppler and the huge walled plain Korolev. To the southwest of Mohorovičić is a small lunar mare that has been named Lacus Oblivionis. Due south of it is an unnamed mountain that formed during the impact that created the South Pole-Aitken Basin.

References

  1. "J. Herschel (crater)". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.

Further reading