Vetchinkin (crater)

Vetchinkin
	Apollo 16 mapping camera image. Gamma-ray spectrometer is at right. NASA photo.
Coordinates	10°12′N131°18′E / 10.2°N 131.3°E Coordinates: 10°12′N131°18′E / 10.2°N 131.3°E
Diameter	98 km
Colongitude	230° at sunrise
Eponym	Vladimir Vetchinkin

Last updated February 25, 2022

Vetchinkin is an eroded lunar impact crater. It is located to the west-northwest of the huge walled plain Mendeleev, on the far side of the Moon. To the west-northwest of Vetchinkin lies the crater Meshcherskiy and to the south-southeast lies Green.

This crater is heavily worn and eroded, and little remains of the original outer rim. The satellite crater Vetchinkin K falls across the eastern side of the rim, and Vetchinkin Q forms a small but prominent crater in the southwestern part of the floor. The remainder of the crater interior is marked by various small craterlets and minor impacts, and there is little to distinguish this feature from the surrounding battered terrain.

Naming

The crater is named after the Russian physicist and engineer Vladimir Vetchinkin. Prior to its naming in 1970 by the IAU,^[1] this crater was known as Crater 215.^[2]

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 Vetchinkin.

Vetchinkin	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
F	10.0° N	134.0° E	30 km
K	9.6° N	132.3° E	22 km
P	7.7° N	130.3° E	17 km
Q	9.6° N	130.7° E	23 km

Related Research Articles

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Appleton is a heavily eroded lunar impact crater that lies in the northern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. To the northwest are the craters Von Neumann and Campbel. The smaller Golovin lies to the northeast, while further to the southwest is the Mare Moscoviense.

Avicenna is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, just beyond the western limb on the northern rim of the Lorentz basin. It is named after the Persian polymath Avicenna. It lies to the north-northwest of the larger crater Nernst, and to the southeast of Bragg.

Fabry is a large lunar impact crater of the form termed a walled plain. It is located on the far side of the Moon, just beyond the northeastern limb. Parts of this area are sometimes brought into view by the effects of libration, but the terrain is seen from the edge and so not much in the way of detail can be observed.

Blackett is a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon, behind the southwest limb. It lies beyond the southeast outer ring of the immense Mare Orientale basin. The formation of that major feature has left Blackett deeply marked with ridge features trending from the northwest. Much of the crater has been shaped by the ejecta from Mare Orientale, particularly along the western half of the crater.

Berosus is a lunar impact crater that is located in the northeast part of the Moon, less than one crater diameter northwest of Hahn. Further to the east-northeast is the large crater Gauss, and to the north-northwest lies Bernoulli. Because of its location, this crater appears foreshortened when viewed from the Earth.

Bunsen is a lunar impact crater that lies near the northwestern limb of the Moon. It is located to the west of the Oceanus Procellarum and the crater von Braun. To the southeast is the crater Lavoisier, and to the northeast lies Gerard. Northwest of Bunsen, on the far side of the Moon, is McLaughlin. Due to its position this crater appears foreshortened when viewed from the Earth, and its visibility is affected by libration.

Clairaut is a lunar impact crater that is located in the rugged southern highlands of the Moon's near side. It lies directly to the south of the crater Maurolycus and southeast of Barocius. Just to the southwest is Cuvier.

Coriolis is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. The crater floor is bisected by the lunar equator, and it lies about three crater diameters northwest of the crater Daedalus.

Dyson is a lunar impact crater, 63 kilometers in diameter, that lies on the far side of the Moon, past the northwest limb. It is located in the northern part of the surface, to the northwest of the crater Coulomb, and east of van't Hoff.

Debes is a lunar impact crater that is located to the north of the Mare Crisium, in the eastern part of the Moon's near side. It was named after German cartographer Ernst Debes. It lies just to the northwest of the crater Tralles and the prominent Cleomedes.

Fourier is a lunar impact crater that is located in the southwestern part of the Moon's near side, just to the southeast of the crater Vieta. To the northeast is the Mare Humorum. The rim of this crater is roughly circular, but appears oval when viewed from the Earth due to foreshortening.

Dante is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon. It lies in the northern hemisphere exactly opposite the prime meridian facing the Earth. The nearest craters of note are Larmor to the north and Morse to the southeast. To the southwest is the oddly shaped Buys-Ballot.

Fleming is a large lunar impact crater that is located on the Moon's far side, and cannot be seen from the Earth. It lies about a crater diameter to the east-northeast of Hertz, and to the northwest of Lobachevskiy.

Gavrilov is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the south of the heavily eroded crater Vernadskiy, and north of Vetchinkin.

Harriot is a lunar impact crater that is located on the far side of the Moon from the Earth. It lies just to the north of the much larger crater Seyfert. To the northeast of Harriot is the crater Cantor. About one and a half crater diameters to the north of Harriot is the eastern end of a crater chain named Catena Sumner. This feature continues to the west-northwest for a distance of 247 km, passing to the north of the crater Sumner.

Ventris is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It is located between the crater Schliemann just to the northwest and the large Keeler which lies slightly farther to the southeast. One crater diameter to the northeast is Vening Meinesz.

Meitner is an impact crater on the far side of the Moon, behind the eastern limb. It lies to the northwest of the crater Kondratyuk, and about a crater diameter to the west of Langemak.

Šafařík is a small lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies due north of the crater Tiselius and to the east-southeast of Sharonov. This is a worn and eroded crater with smaller impacts along the rim to the east and northwest. The remainder of the worn rim and the interior are relatively featureless.

References

↑ Vetchinkin, Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature, International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN)
↑ Lunar Farside Chart (LFC-1A)

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 . 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

Vetchinkin at The Moon Wiki

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[1] Vetchinkin, Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature, International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN)

[2] Lunar Farside Chart (LFC-1A)

[1]

[2]

Apollo 16 mapping camera image. Gamma-ray spectrometer is at right. NASA photo.
Coordinates	10°12′N131°18′E / 10.2°N 131.3°E / 10.2; 131.3 Coordinates: 10°12′N131°18′E / 10.2°N 131.3°E / 10.2; 131.3
Diameter	98 km
Colongitude	230° at sunrise
Eponym	Vladimir Vetchinkin