Virtanen (crater)
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| Crater characteristics | |
| Coordinates | 15.5° N, 176.7° E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 44 km |
| Depth | Unknown |
| Colongitude | 187° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Artturi I. Virtanen |
Virtanen is a lunar crater that is located to the northeast of the larger Sharonov crater, and to the east of Anderson crater. Virtanen lies on the far side of the Moon, and it can not be viewed directly from the Earth.
This crater has a nearly circular rim, with a relatively narrow inner wall and a small rise near the interior mid-point. A small crater impact near the eastern rim lies at the focus of a small ray system that covers much of the Virtanen crater and surroundings. The rays and wispy in nature and somewhat asymmetrical, with the distribution being much more expansive to the west. At the origin of the rays is a bright patch of higher albedo surface.
[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 Virtanen crater.
| Virtanen | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| B | 17.8° N | 177.8° E | 24 km |
| C | 17.3° N | 178.2° E | 20 km |
| J | 14.0° N | 177.9° E | 21 km |
| Z | 16.5° N | 176.6° E | 31 km |
[edit] References
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- 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.
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- 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.
