Repsold (crater)
Encyclopedia
Repsold is a lunar
crater
that is located at the western end of the Oceanus Procellarum
. It lies to the northeast of the crater Galvani
and southeast of the walled plain Volta
. Due to its proximity to the northwestern limb of the Moon
, this crater appears highly foreshortened when viewed from the Earth
. It is named after Johann Georg Repsold
(1770 – 1830), a German astronomer.
This crater has been heavily damaged by impacts and much of the rim has disintegrated, leaving a rugged region of small craters. The most intact section of the rim is in the southeastern part, which separates this formation from the adjacent mare. The satellite crater Repsold G overlies the southwestern part of the crater.
The interior floor of Repsold contains a system of rille
s named the Rimae Repsold. The most prominent of these rifts begins in the northeastern part of the floor and crosses to the southwest. The cleft then traverses Repsold G, dividing it into two, and continues west-southwest until it penetrates into the floor of Galvani. The entire rille system has a diameter of 166 kilometers.
Much of the floor of Repsold is level terrain formed by flows of basalt
ic lava
, which then cracked to form the rille system. However the floor is marked by several small craters and there are some areas containing low ridges, including a small range in the eastern floor.
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...
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 at the western end 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...
. It lies to the northeast of the crater Galvani
Galvani (crater)
Galvani is a lunar crater that lies close to the northwestern limb of the Moon, due south of the larger walled plain Volta. It partly overlies the southeast rim of the crater Langley, which occupies half the gap between Volta and Galvani...
and southeast of the walled plain Volta
Volta (crater)
Volta is a lunar crater near the northwest limb of the Moon. It is located south-southeast of the crater Xenophanes, and due north of the smaller Galvani. The crater Regnault lies across the western rim of Volta. Attached to the southwest rim of Volta and the southern rim of Regnault is Stokes...
. Due to its proximity to the northwestern limb 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...
, this crater appears highly foreshortened when viewed from 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...
. It is named after Johann Georg Repsold
Johann Georg Repsold
Johann Georg Repsold was a German astronomer.He joined the fire brigade of Hamburg in 1799. In 1802 he began building a private observatory, and collaborated in astronomical observations with Heinrich Christian Schumacher. However the observatory was destroyed in the Napoleonic Wars in 1811...
(1770 – 1830), a German astronomer.
This crater has been heavily damaged by impacts and much of the rim has disintegrated, leaving a rugged region of small craters. The most intact section of the rim is in the southeastern part, which separates this formation from the adjacent mare. The satellite crater Repsold G overlies the southwestern part of the crater.
The interior floor of Repsold contains 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 Repsold. The most prominent of these rifts begins in the northeastern part of the floor and crosses to the southwest. The cleft then traverses Repsold G, dividing it into two, and continues west-southwest until it penetrates into the floor of Galvani. The entire rille system has a diameter of 166 kilometers.
Much of the floor of Repsold is level terrain formed by flows of basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
ic lava
Lava
Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...
, which then cracked to form the rille system. However the floor is marked by several small craters and there are some areas containing low ridges, including a small range in the eastern floor.
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 Repsold.| Repsold | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 51.8° N | 77.0° W | 9 km |
| B | 53.2° N | 75.8° W | 38 km |
| C | 48.9° N | 73.6° W | 133 km |
| G | 50.5° N | 70.6° W | 44 km |
| H | 51.7° N | 81.6° W | 12 km |
| N | 49.0° N | 78.2° W | 14 km |
| R | 49.8° N | 72.2° W | 13 km |
| S | 47.8° N | 75.2° W | 9 km |
| T | 47.7° N | 79.9° W | 13 km |
| V | 50.8° N | 75.4° W | 7 km |
| W | 52.6° N | 79.8° W | 10 km |