Ariadaeus is a small, bowl-shaped 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 western shores of Mare Tranquillitatis

Mare Tranquillitatis

Mare Tranquillitatis is a lunar mare that sits within the Tranquillitatis basin on the Moon. The mare material within the basin consists of basalt formed in the intermediate to young age group of the Upper Imbrian epoch. The surrounding mountains are thought to be of the Lower Imbrian epoch, but...

. It lies to the north of the crater Dionysius

Dionysius (crater)

Dionysius is a lunar impact crater that lies on the western edge of the Mare Tranquillitatis. To the southeast is the crater pair of Ritter and Sabine. Just to the northwest is the system of rilles designated Rimae Ritter. These clefts follow a generally northwest direction.The rim of Dionysius is...

, and to the west-southwest of Arago

Arago (lunar crater)

Arago is a lunar impact crater located in the western part of the Mare Tranquillitatis. To the southwest lies the crater Manners, and beyond are Dionysius and the Ritter–Sabine crater pair. To the southeast is the large Lamont formation that has been submerged by the mare.The rim of Arago has a...

. The crater is joined along the northeast rim by the slightly smaller Ariadaeus A, and the two form a double-crater.

This crater marks the eastern extent of 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 Ariadaeus

Rima Ariadaeus

Rima Ariadaeus is a linear rille on the Moon at . It is named after the crater Ariadaeus, which marks its eastern end. Over 300 kilometers long, it is thought to have been formed when a section of the Moon's crust sank down between two parallel fault lines . It is a relatively young lunar feature,...

. This wide rille extends in a nearly straight line to the west-northwest, passing just to the north of the crater Silberschlag

Silberschlag (crater)

Silberschlag is a small, circular Impact crater in the central portion of the Moon. It lies between the craters Agrippa to the southwest and Julius Caesar to the northeast. Silberschlag is bowl-shaped and is joined at the northern rim by a small ridge....

. Other rille systems lie in the vicinity, including the Rimae Ritter to the southeast and Rimae Sosigenes to the northeast.

The crater was named after Philip III of Macedon

Philip III of Macedon

Philip III Arrhidaeus was the king of Macedonia from after June 11, 323 BC until his death. He was a son of King Philip II of Macedonia by Philinna of Larissa, allegedly a Thessalian dancer, and a half-brother of Alexander the Great...

(Arrhidaeus).

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 Ariadaeus.

Ariadaeus	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
A	4.6° N	17.5° E	8 km
B	4.9° N	15.0° E	8 km
D	4.9° N	17.0° E	4 km
E	5.3° N	17.7° E	24 km
F	4.4° N	18.0° E	3 km