Archytas 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...

 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 protrudes into the northern edge of Mare Frigoris

Mare Frigoris

Mare Frigoris is a lunar mare located just north of Mare Imbrium, and stretches east to north of Mare Serenitatis. The mare is in the outer rings of the Procellarum basin...

. To the northwest is the comparably sized crater Timaeus

Timaeus (crater)

Timaeus is a lunar crater in the northern part of the Moon, on the north edge of Mare Frigoris. It forms part of the southwestern wall of the large and irregular walled plain W. Bond. The rim of Timaeus is somewhat pentagonal in shape, with rounded corners...

, and the smaller Protagoras

Protagoras (crater)

Protagoras is a lunar impact crater that is located on the Mare Frigoris in the northern part of the Moon. To the north-northwest is the slightly larger crater Archytas, and to the southeast is the prominent Aristoteles....

 lies in the opposite direction to the southeast. Further to the southwest, beyond the opposite edge of the 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...

, is the dark-floored crater Plato

Plato (crater)

Plato is the lava-filled remains of a lunar impact crater on the moon. It is located on the northeastern shore of the Mare Imbrium, at the western extremity of the Montes Alpes mountain range. In the mare to the south are several rises collectively named the Montes Teneriffe. To the north lies the...

.

The rim of Archytas is sharp-edged and shows little appearance of erosion due to subsequent impacts. The outer wall is nearly circular, with a slight outward bulge in the southeast. The interior is rough, with a ring of material deposited at the base of the inner wall. Just to the east of the crater mid-point is a pair of central peaks.

The surface surrounding the crater is relatively smooth to the south due to the 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...

flows that formed the mare. The surface is more rugged to the north and northeast. The satellite crater Archytas B, located to the northwest of Archytas, forms a lava-flooded bay along the edge of the Mare Frigoris.

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 Archytas.

Archytas	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
B	61.3° N	3.2° E	36 km
D	63.5° N	11.8° E	43 km
G	55.6° N	0.5° E	7 km
K	62.6° N	7.7° E	15 km
L	56.2° N	0.9° E	5 km
U	62.8° N	9.2° E	8 km
W	61.2° N	5.2° E	6 km