Oblique Lunar Orbiter 5 image, facing west | |
Coordinates | 29°06′N116°00′W / 29.1°N 116.0°W Coordinates: 29°06′N116°00′W / 29.1°N 116.0°W |
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Diameter | 56 km |
Depth | Unknown |
Colongitude | 116° at sunrise |
Eponym | Leucippus |
Leucippus is a crater on the Moon's far side. It is relatively isolated from other named craters, although it is located just over one crater diameter to the south-southeast of the huge walled plain Landau. To the southwest of Leucippus is the larger satellite crater Leucippus Q.
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.
Landau is a large lunar impact crater that is located in the northern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It was named after physicist Lev Landau. The crater Wegener is attached to the northeastern rim. Attached to the southeastern rim is Frost.
The rim of Leucippus is eroded, with a smaller crater laid across the southern end. A small craterlet lies along the western inner wall. The edge and inner wall is generally lacking in detail, forming a relatively smooth, gentle slope down to the interior floor. This interior is offset slightly to the southeast, where the inner wall is narrower. The floor is about half the diameter of the crater. There is a small craterlet on the floor along the southern edge, and a few tiny craterlets mark the otherwise relatively level surface.
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Leucippus.
Leucippus | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
---|---|---|---|
F | 29.1° N | 113.0° W | 19 km |
K | 27.2° N | 115.0° W | 14 km |
Q | 25.9° N | 118.8° W | 84 km |
X | 33.4° N | 118.8° W | 36 km |
Armiński is a small lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, to the northeast of the large walled basin Gagarin. To the northwest of Armiński is the crater Beijerinck, and to the southeast lies Cyrano.
Fizeau is a prominent lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, in the southern hemisphere. Nearby craters of note include Minkowski to the west-northwest, and Eijkman to the southwest.
Biela is a lunar impact crater that is located in the rugged highlands of the southeastern Moon. It is named after Austrian astronomer Wilhelm von Biela. The crater lies to the east of Rosenberger, to the southeast of the Watt–Steinheil double crater.
Bhabha is a lunar impact crater that is located in the southern part of the Moon's far side. It is nearly attached to the southeast rim of the larger crater Bose, and the outer rampart of that crater has produced a slight inward bulge along the northwest face of Bhabha. Other nearby craters of note include Stoney to the east, and Bellinsgauzen to the south.
Carmichael is a lunar impact crater that is located along the eastern edge of the Sinus Amoris, in the northeastern quadrant of the Moon's near side. Its diameter is 20 km. It was named after American psychologist Leonard Carmichael. It lies within a couple of crater diameters south-southwest of the smaller crater Hill. Further to the east-northeast is the prominent crater Macrobius. Carmichael was designated Macrobius A before being given its current name by the IAU.
Carver is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, due east of the walled plain Van der Waals. To the northeast is the crater Rosseland, and to the south-southeast lies Kozyrev.
Carnot is a large crater in the northern part of the Moon's far side. It intrudes into the southern rim of the huge walled plain Birkhoff. To the west-southwest of Carnot is the crater Paraskevopoulos.
Kircher is a lunar impact crater that is located in the south-southwestern part of the Moon, near the southern limb. In this position the crater appears foreshortened when viewed from the Earth. It is less than one crater diameter due south of the crater Bettinus, and is nearly attached to Wilson along the south-southeast rim of Kircher.
Weinek is a small lunar impact crater that is located in the southeastern part of the Moon, to the south of the Mare Nectaris. It was named after Austro-Hungarian astronomer Ladislaus Weinek. It lies about one crater diameter to the east-northeast of the prominent Piccolomini. To the southeast is Neander.
Fraunhofer is a lunar impact crater that is located just to the south-southwest of the walled plain Furnerius, in the southeastern part of the Moon. This crater appears foreshortened when viewed from the Earth, and is actually nearly circular.
Donner is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It is located just to the northeast of the Mare Australe, behind the southeastern limb of the Moon. During favorable librations this part of the lunar surface can be brought into view of the Earth, but the site is viewed from the edge and so not much detail can be seen.
Eijkman is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon's southern hemisphere. It lies about a half crater diameter to the southeast of the larger crater Lemaître. To the south-southwest is the crater Crommelin, and to the northeast is Fizeau.
Frost is a lunar impact crater that is attached to the southern rim of the walled plain Landau, and lies on the far side of the Moon. Just to the east is Petropavlovskiy, and to the northeast along the edge of Landau is Razumov. The crater Douglass is located less than a crater diameter to the west-southwest.
Quetelet is a lunar impact crater, approximately 55 kilometers in diameter, that lies in the Moon's northern hemisphere, on the far side from the Earth. It lies to the southeast of the crater Schlesinger, and to the east of Von Zeipel. To the east of Quetelet is Perrine.
Numerov is a lunar impact crater that is located on the Moon's far side, deep in the southern hemisphere. It is attached to the larger and younger crater Antoniadi to the west, and the outer rampart of Antoniadi overlies the inner wall and part of the western interior floor of Numerov. To the east-southeast is the larger walled plain Zeeman, and to the east-northeast is the old crater Crommelin.
Hatanaka is a lunar impact crater that lies on the Moon's far side, just out of sight past the western limb. It lies to the west of the larger crater Leucippus, and to the northwest of the still larger satellite crater Leucippus Q. It recalls the memory of Takeo Hatanaka, a Japanese astronomer.
Kurchatov is a lunar impact crater that is located on the Moon's far side. It is just to the southwest of the crater Wiener, and farther to the southeast of Bridgman. A couple of crater diameters to the south of Kurchatov is the northern edge of the Mare Moscoviense.
Perepelkin is a lunar impact crater that is located just to the south of the similar crater Love. It was named after Soviet astrophysicist Yevgeny Perepyolkin. Attached to the exterior of its southern rim is the smaller Shirakatsi. Less than one crater diameter to the east-northeast is Lane, and to the west-southwest are the co-joined Danjon and D'Arsonval.
Weber is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon, and it cannot be viewed directly from the Earth's surface. This crater is attached to the northwest outer rim of the larger crater Sarton. About two crater diameters to the northwest is the eroded Kramers.
Vening Meinesz is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. The northern inner wall of this crater lies along the lunar equator. To the north of this formation is the larger crater Mandel'shtam, and slightly farther to the south is the larger Keeler. Dewar is located less than one crater diameter to the southeast of Vening Meinesz.
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.
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.
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.