Abul Wáfa (crater)

Abul Wáfa
	Apollo 16 Mapping camera image
Coordinates	1°00′N 116°36′E / 1.0°N 116.6°E
Diameter	54.18 km (33.67 mi)
Depth	4.05 km (2.52 mi)
Colongitude	244° at sunrise
Eponym	Abul Wáfa

Abul Wafa is an impact crater located near the lunar equator on the far side of the Moon.^[3] To the east are the crater pair Ctesibius and Heron. In the northeast lies the larger crater King, and to the southwest is Vesalius.

The perimeter of this crater somewhat resembles a rounded diamond shape. The rim and inner walls are rounded from impact erosion, and have lost some definition. There are ledges around most of the inner wall that may have once been terraces or slumped piles of scree.

A small but notable crater lies on the inner surface of the north rim of Abul Wáfa, and there is a small crater formation attached to the exterior southwest wall. The outer rim is relatively free of impacts, and the interior floor is marked only by a few small craterlets.^[4]^: 65

This feature is named after the Persian mathematician and astronomer Abu al-Wafa' Buzjani (940–998).^[5] It was officially incorporated into lunar nomenclature by the International Astronomical Union in 1970.^[1]

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 Abul Wáfa.^[6]

Abul Wáfa^[4]^: 291	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
A	1.4° N	116.8° E	16 km
Q	0.2° N	115.7° E	30 km

References

1 2 "Abul Wáfa". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
↑ Pike, R. J. (September 1976). "Crater Dimensions from Apollo Data and Supplemental Sources". The Moon. 15 (3–4): 463–477. Bibcode:1976Moon...15..463P. doi:10.1007/BF00562253.
↑ Moore, Patrick (2000). The Data Book of Astronomy. CRC Press. p. 66. ISBN 978-1-4200-3344-1.
1 2 Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
↑ Menzel, D. H.; et al. (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. S2CID 122125855.
↑ Grego, P. (2015). "Satellite Crater". In Hargitai, H.; Kereszturi, Á. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms. New York, NY: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-3134-3_328.

Sources

Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 978-0-913135-17-4.
Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-193-1.

External links

LTO-65D3 Abul Wafa — L&PI topographic map
Abul Wafa at The Moon Wiki

[GPN-1] 1 2 "Abul Wáfa". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.

[Pike_1976-2] Pike, R. J. (September 1976). "Crater Dimensions from Apollo Data and Supplemental Sources". The Moon. 15 (3–4): 463–477. Bibcode:1976Moon...15..463P. doi:10.1007/BF00562253.

[Moore_2000-3] Moore, Patrick (2000). The Data Book of Astronomy. CRC Press. p. 66. ISBN 978-1-4200-3344-1.

[Bussey_Spudis_2004-4] 1 2 Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.

[Menzel_et_al_1971-5] Menzel, D. H.; et al. (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. S2CID 122125855.

[Grego_2015-6] Grego, P. (2015). "Satellite Crater". In Hargitai, H.; Kereszturi, Á. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms. New York, NY: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-3134-3_328.

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