Censorinus (crater)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Crater characteristics | |
| Coordinates | 0.4° S, 32.7° E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 3.8 km |
| Depth | 0.4 km |
| Colongitude | 328° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Censorinus |
Censorinus is a tiny lunar impact crater located on a rise to the southeast of the Mare Tranquillitatis. To the northeast is Maskelyne crater.
The Censorinus crater is distinguished by an area of high-albedo material surrounding the rim. This makes the feature highly prominent when the sun is at a high angle, and it is one of the brightest objects on the visible moon. Bright streaks radiate away radially from the crater, and contrast with the darker lunar mare.
This formation has a sharp-edged, raised rim and a symmetrical, cup-shaped interior. Close-up photographs of this crater by the Lunar Orbiter program show many large blocks laying along the sloping outer rampart. The surface near the crater is hummocky from the deposited ejecta. The crater is otherwise undistinguished.
[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 Censorinus crater.
| Censorinus | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 0.4° S | 33.0° E | 7 km |
| B | 2.0° S | 31.4° E | 8 km |
| C | 3.0° S | 34.1° E | 28 km |
| D | 1.9° S | 35.8° E | 10 km |
| E | 3.6° S | 34.8° E | 12 km |
| H | 1.8° S | 33.7° E | 10 km |
| J | 1.0° S | 31.3° E | 5 km |
| K | 1.0° S | 28.8° E | 4 km |
| L | 2.5° S | 31.2° E | 4 km |
| N | 1.9° S | 36.5° E | 36 km |
| S | 3.8° S | 36.1° E | 17 km |
| T | 3.2° S | 31.1° E | 5 km |
| U | 1.5° S | 34.4° E | 3 km |
| V | 0.6° S | 35.4° E | 4 km |
| W | 1.0° S | 37.5° E | 9 km |
| X | 0.5° S | 37.2° E | 18 km |
| Z | 3.7° S | 36.8° E | 12 km |
The following craters have been renamed by the IAU.
- Censorinus F — See Leakey crater.
[edit] References
- 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.
