Oceanus Procellarum
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Oceanus Procellarum, Latin for "Ocean of Storms", is a vast lunar mare on the western edge of the near side of Earth's Moon. Its name derives from the old superstition that its appearance during the second quarter heralded bad weather. Procellarum is the largest of the lunar maria, stretching 2500 kilometers across its north-south axis and covering roughly 4,000,000 km².
Like all lunar maria, Oceanus Procellarum was formed by ancient basaltic flood volcanic eruptions that covered the region in a thick, nearly flat layer of solidified magma. Unlike the other lunar maria, however, Oceanus Procellarum is not contained within a single well-defined impact basin (evidence for a "Procellarum basin" of impact origin is equivocal). Around its edges lie many minor bays and seas, including Mare Nubium and Mare Humorum to the south. To the northeast, Oceanus Procellarum is separated from Mare Imbrium by the Carpathian Mountains.
The unmanned lunar probes Luna 9, Luna 13, Surveyor 1 and Surveyor 3 landed in Oceanus Procellarum. Apollo 12 also landed in Oceanus Procellarum.
[edit] Sinus Roris
A northward extension of the Oceanus Procellarum has been given the latin name for "Bay of Dew". The IAU-defined selenographic coordinates of this bay are 54.0° N, 56.6° W, and the diameter is 202 km.
The borders of this feature are somewhat indistinct. The bay proper is framed along the western edge by Markov and Oenopides craters, and to the north by Babbage and South craters. At the eastern edge it joins the Mare Frigoris.
Many selenographers have taken liberties with the dimensions of Sinus Roris. Lunar maps often indicate a much larger region for this bay than the official dimensions. These can ranging out as far as the Gerard and Repsold craters to the west, Harpalus crater to the east, and as far south as 44° N latitude, approaching Mons Rümker.
The area where the official coordinates place this bay has a generally higher albedo than the mare to the south, most likely due to deposits of ejecta from impacts to the north.
