Bailly (crater)
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| Crater characteristics | |
| Coordinates | 66.8° N, 69.4° E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 303 km |
| Depth | 4.3 km |
| Colongitude | 65° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Jean S. Bailly |
Bailly is a lunar impact crater that is located near the south-west limb of the moon. The oblique viewing angle gives the crater a foreshortened appearance, and the location near the limb can limit visibility due to libration. The most favorable time for viewing this feature is near the full moon when the terminator is crossing the crater wall.
This is the largest crater on the near side of the moon, and by convention it is termed an impact basin. In area it is comparable in size to a small maria. It lies north of Le Gentil crater and east of Hausen crater. Further west of Bailly are the (unofficial-named) Montes Dörfel mountains.
Bailly's uneven crater floor has remained free of lava flooding, and it is covered with a multitude of ridges and craters. The entire crater has been battered and worn, and the outer ramparts are eroded and in some places have even been worn away by myriad impacts. If the crater ever possessed a central peak, it is no longer discernible. Due to its current condition, observers have termed this feature a 'field of ruins'.
The south-eastern part of the crater is home to two notable craters, designated Bailly A and Bailly B. These craters overlap, and Bailly A lies across the rim of the Bailly mountainous wall.
Due to the size and the worn state of this crater, it is estimated to be more than 3 billion years old.
[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 Bailly crater.
| Bailly | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 69.3° S | 59.5° W | 38 km |
| B | 68.8° S | 63.1° W | 65 km |
| C | 65.6° S | 69.6° W | 20 km |
| D | 65.2° S | 72.2° W | 23 km |
| E | 62.5° S | 65.7° W | 13 km |
| F | 67.5° S | 69.2° W | 16 km |
| G | 65.6° S | 59.1° W | 18 km |
| H | 63.5° S | 62.1° W | 12 km |
| K | 62.8° S | 76.5° W | 20 km |
| L | 60.8° S | 70.9° W | 20 km |
| M | 61.4° S | 68.4° W | 23 km |
| N | 60.5° S | 63.6° W | 11 km |
| O | 69.6° S | 56.7° W | 16 km |
| P | 59.6° S | 60.6° W | 15 km |
| R | 64.8° S | 80.0° W | 18 km |
| T | 66.5° S | 72.8° W | 18 km |
| U | 71.3° S | 75.8° W | 20 km |
| V | 72.0° S | 85.0° W | 29 km |
| Y | 61.3° S | 66.6° W | 12 km |
| Z | 60.2° S | 65.6° W | 12 km |
[edit] References
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- Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A., (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
- Blue, Jennifer (July 25, 2007). Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS. Retrieved on 2007-08-05.
- Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-81528-2.
- Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN 0-936389-27-3.
- McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). Lunar Nomenclature. Jonathan's Space Report. Retrieved on 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: 136.
- Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co.. ISBN 0-304-35469-4.
- Price, Fred W. (1988). The Moon Observer's Handbook. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521335000.
- Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 0-913135-17-8.
- Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes, 6th revision, Dover. ISBN 0-486-20917-2.
- Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-62248-4.
- Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 1852331933.
