![]() Apollo 10 Hasselblad Camera image | |
Coordinates | 2°12′N30°06′E / 2.2°N 30.1°E Coordinates: 2°12′N30°06′E / 2.2°N 30.1°E |
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Diameter | 22 km |
Depth | 2.5 km |
Colongitude | 330° at sunrise |
Eponym | Nevil Maskelyne |
Maskelyne is a solitary lunar impact crater that lies in the southeast part of the Mare Tranquillitatis. Its diameter is 22 km. It was named after British astronomer Nevil Maskelyne. [1] The outer rim has a somewhat polygonal shape, although it is generally circular. The inner walls are terraced and there is a low central rise at the midpoint of the floor.
The landing site of the Apollo 11 expedition is located about 250 kilometers to the west-southwest. To the northeast are Wallach and Aryabhata. To the southeast is the bright Censorinus. To the south are the lunar mountains informally known as Duke Island and Boot Hill. There are sinuous rilles southwest and west of Maskelyne - these were informally named Sidewinder and Diamondback by the Apollo 10 crew [2] and referred to as such by later missions, especially Apollo 11.
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Maskelyne.
Maskelyne | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
---|---|---|---|
A | 0.1° N | 34.0° E | 29 km |
B | 2.0° N | 28.9° E | 9 km |
C | 1.1° N | 32.7° E | 9 km |
D | 2.5° N | 32.5° E | 33 km |
F | 4.2° N | 35.3° E | 21 km |
G | 2.4° N | 26.7° E | 6 km |
J | 3.2° N | 32.7° E | 4 km |
K | 3.3° N | 29.6° E | 5 km |
M | 7.8° N | 27.9° E | 8 km |
N | 5.4° N | 30.3° E | 5 km |
P | 0.5° N | 34.1° E | 10 km |
R | 3.0° N | 31.3° E | 13 km |
T | 0.0° S | 36.6° E | 5 km |
W | 0.9° N | 29.2° E | 4 km |
X | 1.3° N | 27.4° E | 4 km |
Y | 1.8° N | 28.1° E | 4 km |
The following craters have been renamed by the IAU.
Aryabhata, named after Indian astronomer Aryabhata, is the remnant of a lunar impact crater located in the eastern Mare Tranquillitatis. The crater has been almost submerged by lava-flow, and now only an arc-shaped ridge formed from the eastern half of the rim remains above the lunar mare. This crater was previously identified as Maskelyne E before being named by the IAU in 1979. Maskelyne itself is to the southwest.
Wallach is a tiny lunar impact crater located in the eastern Mare Tranquillitatis. It was named after German chemist and Nobel laureate Otto Wallach in 1979. It is a circular, bowl-shaped feature with a negligible interior floor; the inner walls just slope down to the midpoint of the crater. Wallach is located to the northeast of the crater Maskelyne, near some low ridges in the lunar mare. It was previously identified as Maskelyne H before being given a name by the IAU.
Aitken is a large lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, named for Robert Grant Aitken, an American astronomer specializing in binary stellar systems. It is located to the southeast of the crater Heaviside, and north of the unusual formation Van de Graaff. Attached to the southwest rim is Vertregt. To the southeast is the smaller Bergstrand.
Cauchy is a small lunar impact crater on the eastern Mare Tranquillitatis. It was named after French mathematician Augustin-Louis Cauchy. It is circular and symmetric, with a small interior floor at the midpoint of the sloping inner walls. Due to the high albedo of this bowl-shaped formation, it is particularly prominent at full Moon.
Crile is a tiny lunar impact crater. It is roughly circular and cup-shaped, with interior walls that slope down to the midpoint. The crater lies in the Palus Somni, between the Mare Crisium to the east and Mare Tranquillitatis to the west.
Apollonius is a lunar impact crater located near the eastern limb of the Moon. It lies in the region of uplands to the west of Mare Undarum and northeast of the Sinus Successus on the Mare Fecunditatis. It was named after Greek mathematician Apollonius of Perga. It is southwest of the crater Firmicus, and north of Condon.
Proclus is a young lunar impact crater located to the west of the Mare Crisium, on the east shore of the Palus Somni. Its diameter is 27 km. It was named after 5th century Greek mathematician, astronomer and philosopher Proclus.
Diophantus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southwestern part of the Mare Imbrium. It was named after ancient Greek mathematician Diophantus. It forms a pair with the larger crater Delisle to the north. Diophantus has a wide inner wall and a low central rise. To the north of Diophantus is the sinuous rille designated Rima Diophantus, named after the crater. Diophantus C lies near the exterior of the southwest wall.
Vitruvius is a small lunar impact crater that lies on the northern edge of the Mare Tranquillitatis. To the east is the crater Gardner, and to the northeast is Fabbroni. To the north-northwest is the elongated Mons Vitruvius mountain, and beyond is the valley where the Apollo 17 mission landed.
Bowditch is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, just beyond the eastern limb. It is located on a region of the lunar surface that is brought into view due to libration, but at such times the area is viewed from the edge and so not much detail can be observed. It lies just to the north of the small Lacus Solitudinis lunar mare, between the craters Titius to the southwest and Perel'man to the east-northeast.
Sinas is a small lunar impact crater that lies in the eastern part of the Moon on the Mare Tranquillitatis. Its diameter is 12 km. It was named after the Greek magnate Simon Sinas. This is an isolated formation that is located very near the midpoint of the lunar mare. Sinas is circular and bowl-shaped, with a small floor at the midpoint. A wrinkle ridge intersects the east edge of the crater, and several lunar domes lie to the north.
Banachiewicz is a largely degraded lunar impact crater that is located near the eastern limb of the Moon.
Glaisher is a lunar impact crater that is located in the region of terrain that forms the southwest border of Mare Crisium. It lies to the southwest of the lava-flooded crater Yerkes, and west-northwest of the Greaves–Lick crater pair. It is surrounded by a ring of satellite craters of various dimensions, the larger companions generally being arranged to the south of Glaisher.
Schubert is a lunar impact crater that lies near the eastern limb of the Moon's near side. It is located northwest of the Mare Smythii, and southwest of the prominent crater Neper. Nearly attached to the southern rim is the crater Back.
Kästner is a lunar impact crater that is located near the eastern limb of the Moon, to the southwest of the Mare Smythii. Just to the northwest of Kästner is the walled plain Gilbert. To the south is the prominent crater Ansgarius, and to the southwest lies La Pérouse.
La Pérouse is a lunar impact crater that is located near the eastern limb of the Moon. It lies northwest of the larger crater Ansgarius, and to the east of Kapteyn. This crater appears foreshortened due to its location, but the rim is nearly circular when viewed from orbit.
Mons Hadley is a massif in the northern portion of the Montes Apenninus, a range in the northern hemisphere of the Moon. It has a height of 4.5 km (2.8 mi) 14,764 ft (4,500 m) above the adjacent plain and a maximum diameter of 25 km at the base.
Ibn Firnas is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. In 1976 it was named after Abbas Ibn Firnas, a polymath from Andalucia who, in the 9th century, devised a chain of rings that could be used to simulate the motions of the planets and stars.
Ganskiy is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the southeast of the walled plain Hirayama.
Sklodowska (Skłodowska) is a large lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies just past the southeastern limb, and can sometimes be viewed from Earth under favorable conditions of libration and illumination. The crater is located to the northeast of the older walled plain Curie, and to the southwest of Pasteur, another walled plain.