Brashear (lunar crater)

Brashear
Clementine photo
Coordinates73°30′S 171°36′W / 73.5°S 171.6°W / -73.5; -171.6
Diameter60.16 km (37.38 mi)[1]
Colongitude174° at sunrise
EponymJohn A. Brashear
Colorful topography of Brashear from the USGS digital atlas

Brashear is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon,[2] in the southern hemisphere in the vicinity of the south pole. It lies just to the south of the walled plain designated Antoniadi, within the larger crater's outer rampart of ejecta. To the northeast besides Antoniadi is the crater Numerov, and southeast lies the younger De Forest.[3]

This formation is little more than a shallow depression in the lunar surface, its features eroded and blanketed by the ejecta from the relatively fresh crater Antoniadi just to the north.[4]: 141–142 

The satellite crater Brashear P lies to the south-southwest. It is a heavily worn crater with features that have been almost completely worn away by subsequent impacts. Connected to the southern rim of this crater is a series of valleys and impact craters leading a couple of hundred kilometres to the east.

This crater is named after the American astronomer John A. Brashear (1840–1920).[5] Its designation was formally adopted 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 Brashear.[6]

Brashear[4]: 294  Latitude Longitude Diameter
P 76.8° S 175.7° W 71 km

References

  1. 1 2 "Brashear". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. ↑ Moore, Patrick (2000). The Data Book of Astronomy. CRC Press. p. 66. ISBN 978-1-4200-3344-1.
  3. ↑ This crater lies across two map charts:
    • "LAC 141" (PDF). Gazeteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
    • "LAC 142" (PDF). Gazeteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Retrieved 2026-06-15.
  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.
  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.
  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.

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 Brashear (crater) at Wikimedia Commons
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