 Lunar Orbiter 4 image | |
| Coordinates | 8°06′N38°00′W / 8.1°N 38.0°W Coordinates: 8°06′N38°00′W / 8.1°N 38.0°W |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 32 km |
| Depth | 2.6 km |
| Colongitude | 38° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Johannes Kepler |
Kepler is a lunar impact crater that lies between the Oceanus Procellarum to the west and Mare Insularum in the east. To the southeast is the crater Encke. Kepler is named for the 17th century German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler. [1]
Kepler is most notable for the prominent ray system that covers the surrounding mare. The rays extend for well over 300 kilometers, overlapping the rays from other craters. Kepler has a small rampart of ejecta surrounding the exterior of its high rim. The outer wall is not quite circular, and possesses a slightly polygonal form. The interior walls of Kepler are slumped and slightly terraced, descending to an uneven floor and a minor central rise.
One of the rays from Tycho, when extended across the Oceanus Procellarum, intersects this crater. This was a factor in the choice of the crater's name when Giovanni Riccioli was creating his system of lunar nomenclature, as Kepler used the observations of Tycho Brahe while devising his three laws of planetary motion. On Riccioli's maps, this crater was named Keplerus, and the surrounding skirt of higher albedo terrain was named Insulara Ventorum.
Due to its prominent rays, Kepler is mapped as part of the Copernican System. [2]
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Kepler.
| Latitude | Kepler | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7.2° N | A | 36.1° W | 11 km |
| 7.8° N | B | 35.3° W | 7 km |
| 10.0° N | C | 41.8° W | 11 km |
| 7.4° N | D | 41.9° W | 10 km |
| 7.4° N | E | 43.9° W | 6 km |
| 8.3° N | F | 39.0° W | 7 km |
| 12.2° N | P | 34.0° W | 4 km |
| 9.0° N | T | 34.6° W | 3 km |
Tycho is a prominent lunar impact crater located in the southern lunar highlands, named after the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe (1546–1601). It is estimated to be 108 million years old.
Copernicus is a lunar impact crater located in eastern Oceanus Procellarum. It was named after the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. It typifies craters that formed during the Copernican period in that it has a prominent ray system. It may have been created by debris from the breakup of the parent body of asteroid 495 Eulalia 800 million years ago.
Aristarchus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the northwest part of the Moon's near side. It is considered the brightest of the large formations on the lunar surface, with an albedo nearly double that of most lunar features. The feature is bright enough to be visible to the naked eye, and displays unusually bright features when viewed through a large telescope. It is also readily identified when most of the lunar surface is illuminated by earthshine. The crater is deeper than the Grand Canyon.
Maestlin is a small, bowl-shaped impact crater located near the eastern edge of the lunar Oceanus Procellarum. It was named after German mathematician Michael Maestlin. To the east lies the crater Encke and to the northeast is Kepler. Just to the southeast of Maestlin is the curved, ridge-like remains of Maestlin R, a walled plain that has been almost completed submerged by the mare. South of this feature is a system of linear rilles named Rimae Maestlin. The mare surface around Maestlin is dusted with ray material from Kepler.
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.
Seleucus is a lunar impact crater located in the western part of Oceanus Procellarum. To the west is the lava-flooded remains of the walled plain Eddington. To the southwest is the crater Krafft and to the northwest lies Briggs.
Struve is the lava-flooded remains of a lunar impact crater. It is located near the western extreme of the Oceanus Procellarum, close to the western lunar limb. As a consequence, even though it is roughly circular in outline, it appears oval due to foreshortening.
Galilaei is a lunar impact crater located in the western Oceanus Procellarum. Some distance to the southeast is the crater Reiner, while to the south-southwest is Cavalerius. Northeast of the crater is a meandering rille named the Rima Galilaei. To the southeast is the unusual Reiner Gamma formation, a swirling arrangement of light-hued ray-like material.
Humason is a tiny lunar impact crater located in the Oceanus Procellarum. This is a cup-shaped crater with an outer rim that rises slightly above the surrounding lunar mare. To the west is a low system of mare wrinkle ridges named the Dorsa Whiston that wind southwards towards Montes Agricola.
Sirsalis is a relatively young lunar impact crater located near the western lunar limb, to the southwest of the Oceanus Procellarum. The crater lies across a ridge that runs in a north–south direction. It has a sharp edge and a low central peak. The crater overlaps the slightly larger and older Sirsalis A to the west-southwest, and the two form a distinctive feature.
Zinner is a tiny lunar impact crater located due north of the crater Schiaparelli on the Oceanus Procellarum. It is circular and cup-shaped, with a high albedo in comparison to the surrounding lunar mare. The crater has essentially no rim because the mare lava nearly flooded it. A ray from the crater Glushko crosses Zinner. To the northwest is the slightly larger crater Golgi. East of Zinner is the Dorsa Burnet wrinkle ridge system.
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.
Suess is a small lunar impact crater on the Oceanus Procellarum. It is a circular, cup-shaped feature with a higher albedo than the surroundings. The closest significant crater is Reiner, about 150 kilometers to the west-northwest. The lunar mare that surrounds Suess is marked by the rays radiating from the crater Kepler to the east-northeast.
Flamsteed is a small lunar impact crater located on the Oceanus Procellarum, which is named after British astronomer John Flamsteed. It lies almost due east of the dark-hued Grimaldi, and north-northwest of the flooded Letronne bay on the south edge of the mare.
Lichtenberg is an isolated lunar impact crater located in the western part of the Oceanus Procellarum. The nearest crater of note is Briggs to the south.
Reiner is a lunar impact crater on the Oceanus Procellarum, in the western part of the Moon. It has a nearly circular rim, but appears oval in shape due to foreshortening. The rim edge is well-defined and has not been eroded by impacts. In the midpoint of the irregular crater floor is a central peak. Outside the rim is a hummocky rampart that extends out across the mare for about half a crater diameter.
Olbers is a lunar impact crater that lies at the west edge of the Oceanus Procellarum, near the western limb of the Moon. It lies to the northwest of the crater Hevelius, and to the north of the indistinct Hedin. Farther to the south is the crater Riccioli. Due to its location, this crater appears very oblong because of foreshortening. It is viewed nearly edge-on, making observation of the interior difficult from the Earth.
Darney is a small lunar impact crater that is located on the region of the Moon where the Mare Nubium joins the Oceanus Procellarum. It was named after French astronomer Maurice Darney. To the south is the lava-flooded crater Lubiniezky. The southern rim of Darney is attached to a series of low ridges that extend to the southwest.
Damoiseau is a lunar impact crater that is located just to the west of the Oceanus Procellarum, in the western part of the Moon's near side. It lies due east of the prominent crater Grimaldi, a walled plain with a distinctive dark floor. Due south of Damoiseau is the crater Sirsalis.
Dechen is a small, bowl-shaped crater that is located in the northwest part of the Oceanus Procellarum, near the northwest limb of the Moon. The rim of the crater projects slightly above the surrounding lunar mare, and the interior is symmetrical and nearly featureless. It lies to the northeast of the crater Harding, but is otherwise relatively isolated.
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