Korolev (lunar crater)

Korolev (lunar crater)

The crater Korolev (center) from Lunar Orbiter 1. NASA image.
Coordinates 4°00′S 157°24′W / 4.0°S 157.4°WCoordinates: 4°00′S 157°24′W / 4.0°S 157.4°W
Diameter 437 km
Depth Unknown
Colongitude 163° at sunrise
Eponym Sergei Korolev

Korolev is a large lunar crater of the walled plain type, named for Soviet rocket engineer Sergey Korolyov. It lies on the far side of the Moon, and the northern part of its floor crosses the lunar equator. Notable nearby craters include Galois just to the southeast, Das to the south-southeast, Doppler attached to the southern rim, and Kibal'chich to the northeast.

The outer rim of Korolev is heavily worn and eroded, with a multitude of small craterlets lying across the wide rim and the low inner wall. The interior floor is relatively flat compared to the surrounding terrain, but is pock-marked with many craters of varying sizes. The most notable of these interior craters are Korolev M in the southern part of the floor, and Korolev D next to the northeast rim.

Within the interior of Korolev is the remains of a second, inner ring. This is roughly half the diameter of the outer wall, and is the most intact in the eastern half. Here it forms a curving arc of ridges across the floor. At the midpoint of the formation, there is nothing resembling a central peak. However the craters Korolev B, Korolev T, and Korolev L lie within the diameter of the inner ring.

Prior to naming, Korolev was called Feature XV by the IAU.[1]

Views

Oblique view of the 437 km wide basin Korolev, taken by Apollo 17 in 1972, facing north


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 Korolev.

Korolev Coordinates Diameter, km
B 3°40′S 156°17′W / 3.66°S 156.29°W 21
C 0°44′S 153°13′W / 0.73°S 153.22°W 66
D 0°29′S 151°45′W / 0.48°S 151.75°W 24
E 3°26′S 153°23′W / 3.43°S 153.38°W 37
F 4°15′S 152°44′W / 4.25°S 152.74°W 30
G 5°40′S 153°28′W / 5.67°S 153.46°W 12
L 5°44′S 156°49′W / 5.74°S 156.81°W 31
M 8°30′S 157°22′W / 8.50°S 157.37°W 57
P 7°56′S 159°56′W / 7.93°S 159.94°W 18
T 4°08′S 157°50′W / 4.14°S 157.84°W 22
V 1°13′S 162°04′W / 1.21°S 162.06°W 19
W 0°11′S 160°32′W / 0.18°S 160.53°W 31
X 0°34′N 159°26′W / 0.56°N 159.44°W 27
Y 0°31′S 158°27′W / 0.52°S 158.45°W 19

References

  1. ↑ Lunar Landmark Locations - Apollo 8, 10, 11, and 12 Missions. NASA technical note D-6082. Manned Spacecraft Center, Houston, Texas. November 1970. Figure 2.
  • 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 2007-08-05.
  • Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
  • Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN 978-0-936389-27-1.
  • McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). "Lunar Nomenclature". Jonathan's Space Report. Retrieved 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 (2): 136–186. Bibcode:1971SSRv...12..136M. doi:10.1007/BF00171763.
  • Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-304-35469-6.
  • Price, Fred W. (1988). The Moon Observer's Handbook. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-33500-3.
  • Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 978-0-913135-17-4.
  • Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revision ed.). Dover. ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3.
  • Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
  • Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-193-1.
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