Montes Caucasus is a rugged range of mountains in the northeastern 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...

. It begins at a gap of level surface that joins the Mare Imbrium

Mare Imbrium

Mare Imbrium, Latin for "Sea of Showers" or "Sea of Rains", is a vast lunar mare filling a basin on Earth's Moon and one of the larger craters in the Solar System. Mare Imbrium was created when lava flooded the giant crater formed when a very large object hit the Moon long ago...

 to the west with the Mare Serenitatis

Mare Serenitatis

Mare Serenitatis is a lunar mare that sits just to the east of Mare Imbrium on the Moon.It is located within the Serenitatis basin, which is of the Nectarian epoch. The material surrounding the mare is of the Lower Imbrian epoch, while the mare material is of the Upper Imbrian epoch...

 to the east, and extends in an irregular band to the north-northeast to the western side of the prominent crater Eudoxus

Eudoxus (lunar crater)

Eudoxus is a prominent lunar impact crater that lies to the east of the northern tip of the Montes Caucasus range. It is located to the south of the prominent crater Aristoteles in the northern regions of the visible Moon...

. The range forms the northwestern boundary of the Mare Serenitatis. It forms a continuation of the Montes Apenninus

Montes Apenninus

Montes Apenninus are a rugged mountain range on the northern part of the Moon's near side. They are named after the Apennine Mountains in Italy....

 range to the southwest.

There are several breaks in the range where nearby lunar mare

Lunar mare

The lunar maria are large, dark, basaltic plains on Earth's Moon, formed by ancient volcanic eruptions. They were dubbed maria, Latin for "seas", by early astronomers who mistook them for actual seas. They are less reflective than the "highlands" as a result of their iron-rich compositions, and...

 has intruded into the formation, particularly near the southern tip. Embedded within the eastern flank of the range is the crater Calippus

Calippus (crater)

Calippus is a small lunar crater that is located on the eastern edge of the rugged Montes Caucasus mountain range in the northern part of the Moon...

. Along the eastern flank to the south of Eudoxus is the remnants of the crater Alexander

Alexander (crater)

Alexander is a lunar crater-like feature in the rugged surface to the north of Mare Serenitatis. It lies to the south-southwest of the prominent crater Eudoxus, and to the east-northeast of Calippus....

.

The selenographic coordinates of this range are 38.4° N, 10.0° E, and it has an official diameter of 445 km. However some observers list the length as being up to 550 km. The tallest peaks in this range reach heights of 6 km, undoubtedly providing an expansive view of the surroundings from their tops.

The range was named after the Caucasus Mountains

Caucasus Mountains

The Caucasus Mountains is a mountain system in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea in the Caucasus region .The Caucasus Mountains includes:* the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and* the Lesser Caucasus Mountains....

 on the Earth

Earth

Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...

 by the German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 selenographer Johann H. Mädler. However none of the peaks in this range has been assigned individual names, at least officially.

External links

• Montes Caucasus (Lunar Captures)