Lee (crater)

Last updated
Lee
Lee crater 4142 h3.jpg
Coordinates 30°42′S40°42′W / 30.7°S 40.7°W / -30.7; -40.7 Coordinates: 30°42′S40°42′W / 30.7°S 40.7°W / -30.7; -40.7
Diameter 41 km
Depth 1.3 km
Colongitude 41° at sunrise
Eponym John Lee

Lee is the lava-flooded remnant of a lunar impact crater that lies on an inlet of the Mare Humorum, in the southwestern part of the Moon. It was named after British astronomer John Lee. [1] To the east is the crater Vitello, and just to the north is the lava-flooded crater Doppelmayer.

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.

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.

The rim of Lee is worn and somewhat eroded, with a wide gap along the northeast where lava entered and covered the floor. The interior is relatively flat and free of significant impacts. The craterlet Lee A is attached to the exterior of the southern rim of Lee.

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 Lee.

LeeLatitudeLongitudeDiameter
A31.4° S41.2° W18 km
H30.9° S38.9° W4 km
M29.8° S39.7° W77 km
S30.8° S42.8° W6 km
T30.1° S42.0° W4 km

Related Research Articles

Fracastorius (crater) Lunar crater

Fracastorius is the lava-flooded remnant of an ancient lunar impact crater located at the southern edge of Mare Nectaris. To the northwest of this formation lies the crater Beaumont, while to the northeast is Rosse.

Eddington (crater) lunar crater

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.

Schickard (crater) lunar crater

Schickard is a lunar impact crater of the form called a walled plain. It lies in the southwest sector of the Moon, near the lunar limb. As a result, the crater appears oblong due to foreshortening. Attached to the northern rim is the lesser crater Lehmann, and to the northeast is the even smaller Drebbel. Southwest of Schickard is Wargentin, a lava-flooded plateau.

Lade (crater)

Lade is the remains of a lunar impact crater that has been flooded by lava. Its diameter is 58 km. It was named after German astronomer Heinrich Eduard von Lade. To the north is the crater Godin and to the south-southwest is the worn, lava-flooded Saunder.

Oersted (crater) lunar crater

Oersted is a lunar impact crater that has been flooded by lava, leaving only a crescent-shaped rim with a gap to the southwest. The rim climbs to a maximum height of 1.7 km. This feature lies to the southeast of the crater Atlas, and southwest of Chevallier. To the south-southwest is Cepheus.

Bonpland (crater) impact crater

Bonpland is the remains of a lunar impact crater that is attached to the walled plain Fra Mauro to the north and Parry to the east. The intersection of their rims forms a three-pointed mountainous rise. To the southeast is the small crater Tolansky. Bonpland lies on the eastern edge of Mare Cognitum. It is named after Aimé Bonpland, a French explorer and botanist.

Doppelmayer (crater) impact crater

Doppelmayer is the remains of a lunar impact crater that lies on the southwest edge of Mare Humorum. It was named after the German mathematician and astronomer Johann Gabriel Doppelmayr. To the south-southeast is another flooded crater designated Lee, and to the southeast is Vitello. Just to the east-northeast of Doppelmayer lies the nearly submerged crater Puiseux.

Flamsteed (crater) lunar crater

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.

Archytas (crater) impact crater

Archytas is a lunar impact crater that protrudes into the northern edge of Mare Frigoris. To the northwest is the comparably sized crater Timaeus, and the smaller Protagoras lies in the opposite direction to the southeast. Further to the southwest, beyond the opposite edge of the mare, is the dark-floored crater Plato.

Baillaud (crater) impact crater

Baillaud is a lunar impact crater that is located near the north limb of the Moon. The rim of the crater has been eroded and worn by a long history of impacts, leaving a hilly ridge surrounding the interior. The crater Euctemon is intruding into the rim to the northeast, and the rim bulges outward to the northwest. At the south end of the crater is a gap connecting to the lava-flooded surface to the south.

Balboa (lunar crater) lunar crater

Balboa is a lunar impact crater that is located near the western limb of the Moon. Due to foreshortening, the crater appears highly oval when viewed from the Earth. In actuality, however, the formation is relatively circular. It is comparable in size to the crater Dalton, located just to the southwest. The eastern rim of Balboa lies just to the west of the Oceanus Procellarum.

Baily (crater) lunar crater

Baily is the remnant of a lunar impact crater on the boundary between Mare Frigoris to the north and Lacus Mortis to the south. The crater interior has been flooded by lava in the past, and only the northern half of the crater rim remains relatively intact. There is an outward bulge in the northeastern rim, possibly the remnant of another crater formation that once overlapped Baily. The crater interior is flat and relatively featureless, with no impacts of significance. The surviving outer rim reaches a maximum elevation of about 0.5 km.

Billy (crater) lunar crater

Billy is a lunar impact crater that is located at the southern fringes of the Oceanus Procellarum, in the western hemisphere of the Moon. It was named after French mathematician Jacques de Billy. It lies to the southeast of the similar-sized crater Hansteen, and west-southwest of the flooded Letronne.

Chamberlin (lunar crater) lunar crater

Chamberlin is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, just past the southeastern limb. It lies to the southeast of the crater Jeans, and Moulton is attached to the southeastern rim of Chamberlin. This crater is located in a part of the lunar surface that has undergone resurfacing of crater interiors, producing dark-hued crater floors.

DArrest (crater) lunar crater

D'Arrest is a lunar impact crater that is located in the lava-flooded region to the west of the Mare Tranquillitatis. It is named after the German astronomer Heinrich Louis d'Arrest. It lies to the southeast of the crater Agrippa and northwest of Delambre. Just to the northeast are the small, bowl-shaped craters De Morgan and Cayley.

Baldet (lunar crater) impact crater

Baldet is a lunar impact crater that is located on the southern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It lies in the lava-flooded region between the craters Cori to the north, Stoney to the southwest, and the worn walled plain Minkowski to the southeast.

Loewy (crater) lunar crater

Loewy is a small lunar impact crater that lies along the eastern rim of Mare Humorum, in the southwest part of the Moon's near side. It was named after French astronomer Maurice Loewy. This is a lava-flooded formation that lies to the southwest of the larger, lava-flooded crater Agatharchides. To the southeast is an even larger lava-flooded formation, Hippalus.

Cook (crater) lunar crater

Cook is a lunar impact crater that lies in the western part of the Mare Fecunditatis, just to the southeast of the prominent crater Colombo. To the southwest is Monge.

Chevallier (crater) impact crater

Chevallier is a lunar impact crater that is located in the northeastern part of the Moon's near side, about a crater diameter east-southeast of the prominent crater Atlas. To the south-southeast of Chevallier is the flooded crater Shuckburgh.

Cichus (crater) impact crater

Cichus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southwestern part of the Moon, at the eastern edge of Palus Epidemiarum. Just to the northeast and nearly contacting the rim is the lava-flooded crater remnant Weiss. The crater is named after Italian astronomer Cecco d'Ascoli.

References

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

Ben J. Bussey is an American planetary scientist.