Weiss (crater)
Encyclopedia
Weiss is a 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...

 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...

 along the southern edge of the Mare Nubium
Mare Nubium
Mare Nubium is a lunar mare in the Nubium basin on the Moon's near side. The mare is located just to the southeast of Oceanus Procellarum. The actual basin is believed to be of Pre-Nectarian system, with the surrounding basin material being of the Lower Imbrian epoch. The mare material is of the...

. Nearly attached to the southwest rim is the crater Cichus
Cichus (crater)
Cichus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southwestern part of the Moon, at the eastern edge of Palus Epidemiarum. Just to the northeast and nearly contacting the rim is the lava-flooded crater remnant Weiss....

, and Pitatus
Pitatus (crater)
Pitatus is an ancient lunar impact crater located at the southern edge of Mare Nubium. Joined to the northwest rim is the crater Hesiodus, and the two are joined by a narrow cleft. To the south lie the attached Wurzelbauer and Gauricus....

 lies just over one crater diameter to the east-northeast. To the east-southeast lies the eroded Wurzelbauer
Wurzelbauer (crater)
Wurzelbauer is the remnant of a lunar crater. It is located in the rugged terrain on the Moon's southern hemisphere. The slightly smaller crater Gauricus lies next to the eastern rim, while to the north-northeast is Pitatus....

.

The northern rim of this crater has been removed and the interior flooded by 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...

, leaving a nearly featureless surface. The southern half of the rim still survives, although it is eroded in places. This rim climbs to a height of 0.8 km above the base. The satellite crater Weiss E lies at the northern edge of the interior floor, along the surviving remnant of the rim edge. A smaller crater just to the east of Weiss E has incised the low rise along the northeastern side.

The crater is marked by traces of the 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...

 from the prominent crater Tycho
Tycho (crater)
Tycho is a prominent lunar impact crater located in the southern lunar highlands, named after the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe . To the south is the crater Street; to the east is Pictet, and to the north-northeast is Sasserides. The surface around Tycho is replete with craters of various sizes,...

, which lies several hundred kilometers to the southeast. To the north of Weiss 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 Hesiodus, named after the crater Hesiodus
Hesiodus (crater)
Hesiodus is a lunar impact crater located on the southern fringes of Mare Nubium, to the northwest of the crater Pitatus. Starting near the northwest rim of Hesiodus is the wide cleft named Rima Hesiodus. This rille runs 300 km east-southeastward to the Palus EpidemiarumThe low rim of Hesiodus is...

to the northeast.

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 Weiss.
Weiss Latitude Longitude Diameter
A 30.5° S 18.6° W 4 km
B 31.2° S 18.4° W 10 km
D 30.7° S 20.3° W 9 km
E 31.1° S 19.2° W 17 km
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