Becquerel (lunar crater)

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Crater characteristics
Coordinates 40.7° N, 129.7° E
Diameter 65 km
Depth Unknown
Colongitude   232° at sunrise
Eponym A. Henri Becquerel

Becquerel is a lunar crater that lies in the northern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. This is an ancient and heavily worn formation that is now little more than an irregular depression in the surface. The outer rim has been worn and reshaped until it forms a rugged, mountainous region around the flatter interior.

The Becquerel crater was named after Henri Becquerel, who discovered spontaneous radiation in 1896.

The most notable of the formations on the rim is 'Becuerel X', which is part of a double-crater along the northwestern rim. There is a short valley paralleling the southwestern rim, most likely formed by the merging of several small craters. The interior floor of Becquerel is relatively flat, but with rough sections and several tiny craterlets marking the surface. There is a dark patch (low albedo) on the floor near the southern rim.

[edit] Satellite craters

By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater mid-point that is closest to Becquerel crater.

Becquerel Latitude Longitude Diameter
E 41.0° N 131.5° E 32 km
F 40.9° N 132.9° E 21 km
W 42.2° N 126.9° E 27 km
X 42.2° N 128.1° E 34 km

[edit] References

  • See the reference table for the general listing of literature and web sites that were used in the compilation of this page.