Aston (crater)

Aston
Lunar Orbiter 4 image
Coordinates32°54′N 87°42′W / 32.9°N 87.7°W / 32.9; -87.7
Diameter44.48 km (27.64 mi)[1]
DepthUnknown
Colongitude254° at sunrise
EponymFrancis W. Aston

Aston is a lunar impact crater that is located along the northwest limb of the Moon.[2] Because of its location the crater is seen nearly from on edge, and visibility is subject to libration. It lies to the east of the crater Röntgen,[3] some distance due west of Ulugh Beigh on the edge of the Oceanus Procellarum. To the south is the crater Voskresenskiy.[4]

The rim of Aston has been worn down and rounded due to subsequent impacts. It forms a circular shape that has not been significantly altered by nearby impacts. The interior floor is relatively flat and featureless, with no central peak of significance.[5]: 36  The region between Aston and Voskresenskiy has mare-like properties intermixed with ejecta from the Imbrian impact.[4]

This crater is named after scientist Francis William Aston (1877-1945).[6] The name was incorporated into lunar nomenclature with the Rectified Lunar Atlas in 1963.[7] Its designation was formally adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1964.[1] Aston invented the mass spectrometer and used it to discover many of the stable isotopes. For his discoveries, he was awarded the 1922 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He was a keen amateur astronomer with a particular interest in solar eclipses.[8]

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 Aston.[9]

Aston[5]: 292  Latitude Longitude Diameter
K 35.1° N 87.8° W 14 km
L 35.5° N 86.5° W 10 km

References

  1. 1 2 "Aston". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. ↑ Whitaker, E. A.; et al. (1963). Rectified Lunar Atlas: Supplement No. 2 to the Photographic Lunar Atlas. Tucson: University of Arizona Press. Retrieved 2026-06-01. See Field 4.
  3. ↑ "LAC 36" (PDF). Gazeteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Retrieved 2026-06-09.
  4. 1 2 Byrne, Charles J. (2008). The Far Side of the Moon. Springer. pp. 174, 181. ISBN 978-1-4899-8806-5.
  5. 1 2 Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
  6. ↑ 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.
  7. ↑ Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. p. 243. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
  8. ↑ Hevesy, G. (May 1948). "Francis William Aston, 1877-1945". Obituary Notices of Fellows of the Royal Society. 5 (16): 634–650. JSTOR 768761.
  9. ↑ 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

  • 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.
  • Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-193-1.
  • Wikimedia Commons logo Media related to Aston (crater) at Wikimedia Commons
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.