Mees (crater)

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Mees
Mees crater WAC.jpg
LRO WAC image
Coordinates 13°36′N96°06′W / 13.6°N 96.1°W / 13.6; -96.1 Coordinates: 13°36′N96°06′W / 13.6°N 96.1°W / 13.6; -96.1
Diameter 50 km
Depth Unknown
Colongitude 96° at sunrise
Eponym C. E. Kenneth Mees
Lunar Orbiter 4 image Mees crater 4188 med.jpg
Lunar Orbiter 4 image

Mees is a crater on the far side of the Moon. It is located in a part of the lunar surface that is sometimes brought into view of the Earth under conditions of favorable libration and illumination. Even at such a time, however, this feature is seen from a very low angle and little detail can be perceived.

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.

Moon Earths natural satellite

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.

Earth Third planet from the Sun in the Solar System

Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. According to radiometric dating and other sources of evidence, Earth formed over 4.5 billion years ago. Earth's gravity interacts with other objects in space, especially the Sun and the Moon, Earth's only natural satellite. Earth orbits around the Sun in 365.26 days, a period known as an Earth year. During this time, Earth rotates about its axis about 366.26 times.

This crater lies in the northern edge of the huge skirt of ejecta that surrounds the Mare Orientale impact basin. This feature lies several hundred kilometers to the south of Mees, where the outer mountain range Montes Cordillera is located. To the southwest of Mees is the crater Elvey and to the northeast is Einstein, both about three crater diameters distant.

Mare Orientale Lunar mare on the western border of the near side and far side of the Moon

Mare Orientale is a lunar mare. It is located on the western border of the near side and far side of the Moon, and is difficult to see from an Earthbound perspective. Images from spacecraft have revealed it to be one of the most striking large scale lunar features, resembling a target ring bullseye.

Montes Cordillera mountain range

Montes Cordillera is a mountain range on the Moon. This feature forms the outer wall of peaks that surround the Mare Orientale impact basin, the inner ring being formed by the Montes Rook. The center of the range is located at selenographic coordinates 17.5° S, 81.6° W, and the diameter is 574 km (357 mi).

Elvey (crater) impact crater

Elvey is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It is located near the northern edge of the blanket of ejecta that surrounds the Mare Orientale impact basin. To the north of Elvey is the smaller crater Nobel.

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 Mees.

MeesLatitudeLongitudeDiameter
A15.7° N95.2° W36 km
J12.3° N94.7° W26 km
Y15.7° N96.6° W85 km

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Balmer (crater) lunar crater

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Blagg (crater) lunar crater

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Curtis (crater) lunar crater

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Appleton (crater) lunar crater

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Dawson (crater) crater

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Brashear (lunar crater)

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Borda (crater) lunar crater

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Bell (crater) lunar crater

Bell is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon, just past the western limb. It lies in an area of terrain that is marked by many small craters, a number of which are satellite craters of Bell listed in the table below. Bell lies within two crater diameters of Laue to the north, and to the west of the smaller Helberg.

Benedict (crater) lunar crater

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Barbier (crater) lunar crater

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Breislak (crater) impact crater

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Bobone (crater) lunar crater

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Boussingault (crater) impact crater

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Freud (crater) lunar crater

Freud is a tiny lunar impact crater that lies on a plateau within the Oceanus Procellarum, in the northwest part of the Moon's near side. It is located a few kilometers to the west of the Vallis Schröteri, a large, sinuous valley that begins to the north of the crater Herodotus, then meanders north, then northwest, and finally southwest, until it reaches the edge of the lunar mare.

Elmer (crater) lunar crater

Elmer is a small lunar impact crater that is located to the south of Mare Smythii, near the eastern limb of the Moon. This crater is seen at a highly oblique angle from Earth, and the visibility is affected by libration. Elmer lies southwest of the crater Kreiken, and east-southeast of the larger Dale. This is a circular, bowl-shaped crater with an interior floor that occupies about half the total diameter.

Demonax (crater) impact crater

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Courtney (crater) lunar crater

Courtney is a tiny lunar impact crater on the Mare Imbrium, a lunar mare in the northwest quadrant of the Moon. It lies about two crater diameters to the northwest of Euler, in an otherwise isolated stretch of the mare. The dark surface in this region is marked by Euler's ray material. The name is an English male name.

Comstock (crater) lunar crater

Comstock is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the northeast of the walled plain Fersman, and north of the crater Weyl.

Freundlich (crater) lunar crater

Freundlich is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies midway between the craters Trumpler to the north-northwest and the irregular Buys-Ballot to the south-southeast. This crater has a circular rim that is more heavily eroded at the northern and southern ends. Groups of craters lie across the floor to the southeast and the north, and individual small craters lie elsewhere within the interior. The crater is named after Erwin Freundlich.

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.