 Abel crater and satellite craters | |
| Coordinates | 34°30′S 87°18′E / 34.5°S 87.3°E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 122 km |
| Depth | 1.19 km[1] |
| Colongitude | 276° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Niels Henrik Abel |
Abel is an ancient lunar impact crater that lies near the southeast limb of the Moon's near side. It is located to the south of the crater Barnard, at the northwest edge of the Mare Australe.
The rim of Abel is heavily eroded and distorted in shape, forming a somewhat polygonal figure. It is incised and overlaid by past impacts. The satellite crater Abel A overlies the southern rim, while Abel M and Abel L intrude into the western wall.
The eastern floor of Abel has been resurfaced by past lava flows, leaving a relatively smooth, flat surface with a low albedo. The remains of a small crater rim protrude near the northeast wall. The western floor is rougher in texture and matches the albedo of the surrounding surface.
The crater was named for the Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel.
Satellite craters[edit]
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Abel.
| Abel | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 36.6° S | 86.0° E | 19 km |
| B | 36.7° S | 82.8° E | 41 km |
| C | 36.0° S | 81.0° E | 31 km |
| D | 37.7° S | 87.7° E | 30 km |
| E | 37.8° S | 86.5° E | 13 km |
| J | 35.5° S | 79.0° E | 11 km |
| K | 35.0° S | 77.2° E | 9 km |
| L | 34.4° S | 82.6° E | 67 km |
| M | 32.2° S | 83.6° E | 81 km |
References[edit]
- Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A. (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
- Blue, Jennifer (July 25, 2007). "Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature". USGS. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
- 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. 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.
- Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3.
- 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.
