Stöfler (crater)

Stöfler
	Lunar Orbiter 4 image of Stofler, with Faraday on the southeast rim
Coordinates	41°06′S 6°00′E / 41.1°S 6.0°E
Diameter	126 km
Depth	2.8 km
Colongitude	354° at sunrise
Formation	Pre-Nectarian
Eponym	Johannes Stöffler

Stöfler is a large lunar impact crater located in the crater-dotted southern highlands. British astronomer T. W. Webb noted it "has a very level interior, crossed by two rays from Tycho, and containing at least 16 minute craters. It is well seen about [1st] Quarter."^[3] Stöffler sits to the west of the crater Maurolycus. The distorted crater Fernelius is attached to the northern rim, and Miller and Nasireddin lie to the west. Faraday has overlain and damaged the western rim, and this crater in turn has been overlain by several smaller craters.

This crater is the site of a magnetic anomaly.^[4] The rim of Stöfler is worn and eroded, but the outline remains relatively intact except where overlain by Faraday. The smaller Stöfler K intrudes into the northwestern rim, and Stöfler F forms an indentation into the base of the southwestern interior wall.

The crater floor has been filled in with deposits, either from lava flows or ejecta from basin impacts, and is relatively flat and featureless in the northwest half. If there was a central peak, it has now become buried. The floor has a low albedo, making the crater relatively easy to identify as it is one of the few craters in this region of the lunar surface that has a dark floor. Traces of bright ray material from Tycho, located to the west, can be seen across the floor.

This crater was named after the German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Stöffler (1452-1531). Its designation was formally adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1935.^[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 Stöfler.

Stöfler	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
D	43.8° S	4.3° E	54 km
E	43.8° S	5.8° E	16 km
F	42.7° S	4.9° E	18 km
G	43.4° S	2.0° E	20 km
H	40.3° S	1.7° E	27 km
J	42.2° S	2.4° E	76 km
K	39.4° S	4.2° E	19 km
L	39.1° S	7.8° E	17 km
M	41.0° S	8.1° E	9 km
N	41.9° S	6.6° E	14 km
O	43.3° S	1.3° E	9 km
P	43.2° S	7.3° E	33 km
R	42.2° S	1.8° E	6 km
S	44.9° S	5.8° E	9 km
T	39.7° S	8.2° E	5 km
U	40.1° S	9.6° E	5 km
X	40.5° S	5.5° E	3 km
Y	39.9° S	5.5° E	3 km
Z	40.3° S	3.2° E	4 km

References

1 2 "Stöfler". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
↑ Wilhelms, Don E.; McCauley, John F.; Trask, Newell J. (1987). The geologic history of the Moon. USGS Professional Paper 1348. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 149. doi:10.3133/pp1348.
↑ Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. pp. 147, 154–159. Reprint: ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3
↑ Blewett, David T.; et al. (February 2011). "Lunar swirls: Examining crustal magnetic anomalies and space weathering trends". Journal of Geophysical Research. 116 (E2) E02002. Bibcode:2011JGRE..116.2002B. doi:10.1029/2010JE003656.

Sources

Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A. (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN 978-0-936389-27-1.
McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). "Lunar Nomenclature". Jonathan's Space Report. Archived from the original on 2012-02-08. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (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.
Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-304-35469-6.
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.
Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-193-1.

External links

Wood, Chuck (October 16, 2007). "6 Degrees of Separation". Lunar Photo of the Day. Archived from the original on October 21, 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-16.

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

[Wilhelms_et_al_1987-2] Wilhelms, Don E.; McCauley, John F.; Trask, Newell J. (1987). The geologic history of the Moon. USGS Professional Paper 1348. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 149. doi:10.3133/pp1348.

[Webb_1962-3] Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. pp. 147, 154–159. Reprint: ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3

[Blewett_et_al_2011-4] Blewett, David T.; et al. (February 2011). "Lunar swirls: Examining crustal magnetic anomalies and space weathering trends". Journal of Geophysical Research. 116 (E2) E02002. Bibcode:2011JGRE..116.2002B. doi:10.1029/2010JE003656.

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