Amundsen (crater)

Amundsen
Clementine image (1994)
Coordinates84°30′S 82°48′E / 84.5°S 82.8°E / -84.5; 82.8
Diameter103.39 km (64.24 mi)[1]
Depth5.65 km (3.51 mi)[2]
Colongitude272° at sunrise
EponymRoald Amundsen
Lunar Orbiter 4 image (1967)

Amundsen is a large lunar impact crater located near the south pole of the Moon. This crater is named after the Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen (1872–1928).[3] It lies along the southern lunar limb, and so is viewed from the side by an observer on the Earth. The crater designation was formally adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1964.[1] Earlier, the name was proposed to the IAU by amateur selenographer H. P. Wilkins, but was rejected.[4]

To the northwest of Amundsen is the crater Scott, a formation of similar dimensions that is named for another Antarctic explorer. Nobile is attached to the western rim. The Amundsen crater overlaps a smaller crater formation to the northwest, and Hédervári is attached to the northern rim. Just to the south of Amundsen is the smaller crater Faustini.[5]

Description

This crater lies across the rim of the 355-km diameter Amundsen-Ganswindt basin, which dates to the Pre-Nectarian era of the lunar geologic timescale.[6] The impact that formed this crater dates to around 4.04 billion years ago. Resurfacing events on the crater floor and surrounding plains occurred 3.8 and 3.7 billion years ago.[7]

The rim of Amundsen is slightly distended along the southern edge, and the terraced inner surface is wider at that point than elsewhere along the outer wall. The northern wall of Amundsen receives large amounts of solar illumination and flux from the solar wind, resulting in an increased maturity of the regolith (compared to the shadowed southern face).[8]

The inner floor is relatively flat, with a pair of central peaks near the midpoint. Much of the crater floor is cloaked in shadow during the lunar day, with only the southern floor and the central peaks receiving sunlight.[9]: 144 

Amundsen Crater hosts 82 square kilometers of carbon dioxide cold traps, where temperatures remain below 60 K (−213 °C; −352 °F), potentially containing solid carbon dioxide.[10] Such areas could be high-priority target sites for future landed missions.[11][12]

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 Amundsen.[13]

Feature[9]: 291 LatitudeLongitudeDiameterRef
Amundsen C 80.7° S 83.2° E 24.22 km WGPSN

The crater formerly named Amundsen A was renamed Hédervári in 2006.[14]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Amundsen". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. ↑ Joshi, Maitri P. (February 2017). "Physical properties of lunar craters". Research in Astronomy and Astrophysics. 17 (3). id. 24. Bibcode:2017RAA....17...24J. doi:10.1088/1674-4527/17/3/24.
  3. ↑ 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. See p. 181.
  4. ↑ Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. p. 171, 230. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
  5. ↑ Jones, Brian (2024). Who's Who In The Moon: From Abbot to Zupus A Guide To The Moon And The People On It. White Owl. pp. 145–146. ISBN 978-1-5267-3710-6.
  6. ↑ Byrne, Charles J. (2008). The Far Side of the Moon. Springer. p. 76. ISBN 978-1-4899-8806-5.
  7. ↑ Wueller, Lukas; et al. (June 2024). "Geologic History of the Amundsen Crater Region Near the Lunar South Pole: Basis for Future Exploration". The Planetary Science Journal. 5 (6). id. 147. Bibcode:2024PSJ.....5..147W. doi:10.3847/PSJ/ad2c04.
  8. ↑ Byron, B. D.; et al. (March 2019). "Effects of Space Weathering and Porosity on the Far-UV Reflectance of Amundsen Crater". Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. 124 (3): 823–836. Bibcode:2019JGRE..124..823B. doi:10.1029/2018JE005908.
  9. 1 2 Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
  10. ↑ Schorghofer, Norbert; et al. (2021). "Carbon Dioxide Cold Traps on the Moon". Geophysical Research Letters. 48 (20). American Geophysical Union (AGU). Bibcode:2021GeoRL..4895533S. doi:10.1029/2021gl095533. ISSN 0094-8276.
  11. ↑ Paul Hayne, a planetary scientist at the University of Colorado, Boulder, quoted in: "Carbon dioxide cold traps on the moon are confirmed for the first time". phys.org. American Geophysical Union. November 15, 2021. Retrieved 2026-05-14.
  12. ↑ Longo, Alex; Liu, Xiaoming (January 2026). "Science objectives and mission scenarios for a crewed sortie to the Amundsen rim landing region". Planetary and Space Science. 270. Bibcode:2026P&SS..27006220L. doi:10.1016/j.pss.2025.106220. 106220.
  13. ↑ 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.
  14. ↑ "Hédervári". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
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