Tacitus (crater)

Tacitus

LRO WAC mosaic
Coordinates	16°12′S19°00′E / 16.2°S 19.0°E / -16.2; 19.0
Diameter	40 km
Depth	2.8 km
Colongitude	340° at sunrise
Eponym	Cornelius Tacitus

Lunar Orbiter 4 image

Tacitus is a lunar impact crater located to the northwest of the crater Catharina, at the northern extension of the Rupes Altai ridge line. It was named after the 1st century Roman historian and writer Tacitus. ^[1] Directly west is the crater Almanon, and to the northeast is Cyrillus. To the southeast of Tacitus is a long chain of craters named the Catena Abulfeda. This chain runs to the northwest from the eastern edge of the Rupes Altai, continuing for over 200 kilometers.

The crater terminates a ridge which forms part of the Rupes Altai. The outer wall has a small rampart, and the interior surfaces are terraced. The rim outline has a slight polygonal outline. There is a low ridge on the crater floor running from the north wall.

Satellite craters

Satellite craters of Tacitus

By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Tacitus.

Tacitus	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
A	17.4° S	20.5° E	11 km
B	14.0° S	20.4° E	13 km
C	13.6° S	19.8° E	9 km
D	13.5° S	21.0° E	15 km
E	13.9° S	20.1° E	9 km
F	17.1° S	17.6° E	10 km
G	17.4° S	18.2° E	6 km
H	17.8° S	18.5° E	7 km
J	14.9° S	19.7° E	3 km
K	13.1° S	20.1° E	3 km
L	14.4° S	20.9° E	6 km
M	13.9° S	21.5° E	6 km
N	16.9° S	19.4° E	7 km
O	14.0° S	21.9° E	5 km
Q	18.0° S	20.5° E	5 km
R	16.7° S	19.7° E	5 km
S	14.5° S	19.1° E	10 km
X	15.8° S	18.2° E	4 km

References

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

• Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A. (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
• Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-81528-4.
• Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN   978-0-936389-27-1.
• McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). "Lunar Nomenclature". Jonathan's Space Report. Archived from the original on 2012-02-08. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
• Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (1971). "Report on Lunar Nomenclature by the Working Group of Commission 17 of the IAU". Space Science Reviews. 12 (2): 136–186. Bibcode:1971SSRv...12..136M. doi:10.1007/BF00171763. S2CID   122125855.
• Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. ISBN   978-0-304-35469-6.
• Price, Fred W. (1988). The Moon Observer's Handbook. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-33500-3.
• Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN   978-0-913135-17-4.
• Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. ISBN   978-0-486-20917-3.
• Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN   978-0-521-62248-6.
• Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN   978-1-85233-193-1.

External links

• Tacitus at The Moon Wiki