Apianus (crater)

Apianus
Lunar Orbiter 4 image
Coordinates26°54′S 7°54′E / 26.9°S 7.9°E / -26.9; 7.9
Diameter63.44 km (39.42 mi)[1]
Depth2.08 km (1.29 mi)
Colongitude356° at sunrise
FormationNectarian[2]
EponymPetrus 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.[3][4]

In the lunar geologic timescale, this formation is from the Nectarian period, 3.92 to 3.85 billion years ago.[2] 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.[2] 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.[5]

This crater is named after 16th century German mathematician and astronomer Petrus Apianus (1495-1552).[2] It was formally adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1935.[1] Its name was added to lunar nomenclature by Italian astronomer Giovanni Battista Riccioli in 1651.[6]

Satellite craters

Apianus and its satellite craters taken from Earth in 2012 at the University of Hertfordshire's Bayfordbury Observatory with the telescopes Meade LX200 14" and Lumenera Skynyx 2-1

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.[7]

Apianus[8]: 291–292  Latitude Longitude Diameter Ref
A 25.7° S 6.6° E 13.11 km WGPSN
B 27.4° S 9.0° E 10.21 km WGPSN
C 28.1° S 10.5° E 19.64 km WGPSN
D 26.1° S 10.7° E 33.66 km WGPSN
E 28.8° S 8.2° E 8.39 km WGPSN
F 28.1° S 6.4° E 5.39 km WGPSN
G 28.1° S 7.7° E 4.02 km WGPSN
H 28.1° S 8.7° E 6.57 km WGPSN
J 26.3° S 8.6° E 6.71 km WGPSN
K 27.4° S 9.3° E 6.44 km WGPSN
L 29.1° S 10.9° E 4.67 km WGPSN
M 24.7° S 10.3° E 6.98 km WGPSN
N 28.8° S 9.9° E 3.46 km WGPSN
P 25.2° S 9.2° E 41.59 km WGPSN
R 25.7° S 8.9° E 13.1 km WGPSN
S 25.6° S 8.5° E 23.96 km WGPSN
T 27.7° S 9.5° E 11.52 km WGPSN
U 27.9° S 9.0° E 16.82 km WGPSN
V 25.3° S 10.5° E 3.2 km WGPSN
W 25.5° S 7.4° E 9.68 km WGPSN
X 28.3° S 7.1° E 3.1 km WGPSN

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Apianus". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Autostar Suite Astronomer Edition. CD-ROM. Meade, April 2006.
  3. ↑ Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. p. 211. ISBN 978-0-304-35469-6.
  4. ↑ Chong, S. M.; et al. (2002). Photographic Atlas of the Moon. Cambridge University Press. pp. 32–33. ISBN 978-0-521-81392-1.
  5. ↑ Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 0-913135-17-8.
  6. ↑ Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. pp. 60–66, 210. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
  7. ↑ 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.
  8. ↑ Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. pp. 291–292. ISBN 0-521-81528-2.
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