Plinius (crater)
Encyclopedia
Plinius is a prominent lunar
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...

 on the border between 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 north and Mare Tranquilitatis to the south. South-southeast of Plinius is the crater Ross
Ross (lunar crater)
Ross is a lunar crater that is located in the northwest part of the Mare Tranquillitatis. It lies south-southwest of the crater Plinius, and northwest of the lava-flooded Maclear....

, and to the northeast is Dawes
Dawes (lunar crater)
Dawes is a lunar impact crater, named after William Rutter Dawes, and which is located in the wide straight between Mare Serenitatis and Mare Tranquilitatis. To the southwest is the larger crater Plinius. To the northeast is the Mons Argaeus mountain rise....

. Just to the north is a system of 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...

s named the Rimae Plinius. At the northwest edge of the rille is the Promontorium Archeruia, a cape off the western rim that encloses 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...

.

The sharp rim of Plinius is slightly oval in form, with a terraced inner wall, and an irregular outer rampart. It lacks a visible ray system
Ray system
A ray system comprises radial streaks of fine ejecta thrown out during the formation of an impact crater, looking a bit like many thin spokes coming from the hub of a wheel. The rays can extend for lengths up to several times the diameter of their originating crater, and are often accompanied by...

. The crater floor is hilly, and in the middle is an irregular central peak that has the appearance of a double crater formation under certain angles of illumination. There is a cleft feature attached to the northern side of the peak. The eastern half of the floor is much more smooth and level than the hummocky west, and this section forms a crescent shape about the central peak.

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 Plinius.
Plinius Latitude Longitude Diameter
A 13.0° N 24.2° E 4 km
B 14.1° N 26.2° E 5 km
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