Apianus (crater)

Apianus (crater)

Coordinates 26°54′S 7°54′E / 26.9°S 7.9°ECoordinates: 26°54′S 7°54′E / 26.9°S 7.9°E
Diameter 63 km
Depth 2.08 km
Colongitude 356° at sunrise
Eponym Petrus Apianus

Apianus is a lunar impact crater that is located on the rugged south-central highlands of the Moon. It is located to the northeast of the crater Aliacensis, and to the northwest of Poisson. The worn crater Krusenstern is attached to the west-northwestern rim.

The outer wall of the crater has been worn and eroded by subsequent impacts, and a pair of small craterlets overlay the rim to the southeast and northeast. The central crater is 63 kilometers in diameter and 2,080 meters deep.[1] The craterlet on the southeast rim, Apianus B, is a member of a cluster of co-joined craterlets that includes Apianus T and Apianus U. The interior floor of the central crater is relatively smooth and lacks a central peak, although the surface appears somewhat convex. Only a few tiny craterlets mark the surface.[2]

A variety of other nearby craters and craterlets belong to Apianus.

The crater is from the Nectarian period, 3.92 to 3.85 billion years ago.[1]

Apianus is named after 16th century German mathematician and astronomer Petrus Apianus.[1] The name applies as official international standard since 1935 and is registered at the International Astronomical Union (IAU).[3]

Satellite craters

By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Apianus.[4]

Apianus Latitude Longitude Diameter
A 25.7° S 6.6° E 14 km
B 27.4° S 9.0° E 10 km
C 28.1° S 10.5° E 20 km
D 26.1° S 10.7° E 35 km
E 28.8° S 8.2° E 9 km
F 28.1° S 6.4° E 6 km
G 28.1° S 7.7° E 5 km
H 28.1° S 8.7° E 7 km
J 26.3° S 8.6° E 7 km
K 27.4° S 9.3° E 7 km
L 29.1° S 10.9° E 5 km
M 24.7° S 10.3° E 7 km
N 28.8° S 9.9° E 4 km
P 25.2° S 9.2° E 40 km
R 25.7° S 8.9° E 13 km
S 25.6° S 8.5° E 8 km
T 27.7° S 9.5° E 12 km
U 27.9° S 9.0° E 16 km
V 25.3° S 10.5° E 3 km
W 25.5° S 7.4° E 9 km
X 28.3° S 7.1° E 3 km

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 Autostar Suite Astronomer Edition. CD-ROM. Meade, April 2006.
  2. Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 0-913135-17-8.
  3. M. A. Blagg, K. Müller, W. H. Wesley, S. A. Saunder, J. H. G. Franz (1935). Named Lunar Formations. London: Percy Lund, Humphries & Co. Ltd.
  4. Bussey, B.; Spudis, P., (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-81528-2.

External links