Kugler (crater)

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Kugler
Kugler LROC.jpg
LRO WAC image
Coordinates 53°48′S103°42′E / 53.8°S 103.7°E / -53.8; 103.7 Coordinates: 53°48′S103°42′E / 53.8°S 103.7°E / -53.8; 103.7
Diameter 65 km
Depth Unknown
Colongitude 254° at sunrise
Eponym Franz X. Kugler
View from Apollo 15, with Kugler U in upper right and Kugler N in upper left. Kugler crater AS15-M-2753.jpg
View from Apollo 15, with Kugler U in upper right and Kugler N in upper left.
Lunar Orbiter 4 image Kugler crater 4009 h1.jpg
Lunar Orbiter 4 image

Kugler is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It is located just past the southeast limb of the Moon's surface, in the proximity of the libration zone that is occasionally brought into sight. The crater lies in the midpoint between the craters Anuchin to the north-northwest and Priestley to the south-southeast.

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.

Sphere round geometrical and circular object in three-dimensional space; special case of spheroid

A sphere is a perfectly round geometrical object in three-dimensional space that is the surface of a completely round ball.

In the past the floor of this crater has been flooded by basaltic lava, leaving a dark (low albedo) surface that is level and nearly featureless except for a wrinkle ridge that crosses the crater. The surviving rim is low and heavily worn, with a number of old crater indentations along the edge. Attached to the western rim is the smaller Kugler U, an old, worn formation. To the south is the double-crater formation Kugler N, which has also been flooded by lava.

Basalt A magnesium- and iron-rich extrusive igneous rock

Basalt is a mafic extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of magnesium-rich and iron-rich lava exposed at or very near the surface of a terrestrial planet or a moon. More than 90% of all volcanic rock on Earth is basalt. Basalt lava has a low viscosity, due to its low silica content, resulting in rapid lava flows that can spread over great areas before cooling and solidification. Flood basalt describes the formation in a series of lava basalt flows.

Lava Molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption

Lava is molten rock generated by geothermal energy and expelled through fractures in planetary crust or in an eruption, usually at temperatures from 700 to 1,200 °C. The structures resulting from subsequent solidification and cooling are also sometimes described as lava. The molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites, though such material located below the crust is referred to by other terms.

Albedo ratio of reflected radiation to incident radiation

Albedo is the measure of the diffuse reflection of solar radiation out of the total solar radiation received by an astronomical body. It is dimensionless and measured on a scale from 0 to 1.

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 Kugler.

KuglerLatitudeLongitudeDiameter
N56.3° S102.8° E42 km
R55.5° S98.6° E13 km
U54.0° S101.5° E37 km

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Priestley (lunar crater) lunar crater

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Lebedev (crater) impact crater

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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.