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Cardanus (crater)
Encyclopedia
Cardanus is a lunar
impact crater
that is located in the western part of the Moon
, in the western part of the Oceanus Procellarum
. Due to its location the crater appears very oval because of foreshortening, and it is viewed almost from the side.
Cardanus is distinctive for the chain of craters, designated Catena Krafft, that connect its northern rim with the crater Krafft
to the north. The outer rim is sharp-edged and somewhat irregular, with a hummocky outer rampart and terraces along parts of the inner wall. The crater floor has several small craterlets across its surface, and it has a low ridge near the mid-point. The floor surface is somewhat irregular in the southwest, but nearly featureless elsewhere.
To the southwest is the rille
designated Rima Cardanus, a cleft in the mare that generally follows a northeasterly direction. To the southeast, beyond the rille, is the small crater Galilaei
. Southwest of Cardanus is Olbers
.
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
impact crater
Impact crater
In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...
that is located in the western part of the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
, in the western part of the Oceanus Procellarum
Oceanus Procellarum
Oceanus Procellarum is a vast lunar mare on the western edge of the near side of the Earth's Moon. Its name derives from the old superstition that its appearance during the second quarter heralded bad weather...
. Due to its location the crater appears very oval because of foreshortening, and it is viewed almost from the side.
Cardanus is distinctive for the chain of craters, designated Catena Krafft, that connect its northern rim with the crater Krafft
Krafft (crater)
Krafft is a prominent lunar impact crater located near the western edge of the Oceanus Procellarum. To the north is the lava-flooded walled plain Eddington. Almost due south is the crater Cardanus, and the two are connected by a 60-kilometer-long chain of craters known as the Catena Krafft.Krafft...
to the north. The outer rim is sharp-edged and somewhat irregular, with a hummocky outer rampart and terraces along parts of the inner wall. The crater floor has several small craterlets across its surface, and it has a low ridge near the mid-point. The floor surface is somewhat irregular in the southwest, but nearly featureless elsewhere.
To the southwest is the rille
Rille
Rille is typically used to describe any of the long, narrow depressions in the lunar surface that resemble channels. Typically a rille can be up to several kilometers wide and hundreds of kilometers in length...
designated Rima Cardanus, a cleft in the mare that generally follows a northeasterly direction. To the southeast, beyond the rille, is the small crater Galilaei
Galilaei (lunar crater)
Galilaei is a lunar impact crater located in the western Oceanus Procellarum. Some distance to the southeast is the crater Reiner, while to the south-southwest is Cavalerius. Northeast of the crater is a meandering rille named the Rima Galilaei...
. Southwest of Cardanus is Olbers
Olbers (crater)
Olbers is a lunar crater that lies at the west edge of the Oceanus Procellarum, near the western limb of the Moon. It lies to the northwest of the crater Hevelius, and to the north of the indistinct Hedin. Farther to the south is the crater Riccioli. Due to its location, this crater appears very...
.
Satellite craters
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater mid-point that is closest to Cardanus.| Cardanus | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| B | 11.4° N | 73.8° W | 13 km |
| C | 11.3° N | 76.2° W | 14 km |
| E | 12.7° N | 70.7° W | 6 km |
| G | 11.5° N | 74.9° W | 8 km |
| K | 14.2° N | 76.8° W | 8 km |
| M | 14.9° N | 77.1° W | 9 km |
| R | 12.3° N | 73.4° W | 21 km |