Bolyai (crater)
Encyclopedia
Bolyai is an old lunar
crater
that is located in the southern hemisphere
on the far side of the Moon
. To the southeast of Bolyai is the crater Eötvös
, and to the north is Neujmin
.
This crater has been heavily eroded and worn by subsequent impacts, leaving only a deformed remnant of the original rim that is overlaid by a multitude of lesser craters. The most notable of these is Bolyai D along the northeast rim and Bolyai W to the northwest. The latter is actually a formation of multiply overlapping craters.
The interior of the crater is relatively level, but rough in places due to impacts that have reshaped the surface. Near the mid-point, and from there towards the western rim, is a section of floor that has been resurfaced by lava
flows. This area is smoother than the remainder of the floor, and has a lower albedo
, giving it a dark appearance.
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 in the southern hemisphere
Sphere
A sphere is a perfectly round geometrical object in three-dimensional space, such as the shape of a round ball. Like a circle in two dimensions, a perfect sphere is completely symmetrical around its center, with all points on the surface lying the same distance r from the center point...
on the far side 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...
. To the southeast of Bolyai is the crater Eötvös
Eötvös (crater)
Eötvös is the remains of a lunar crater on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the north-northwest of the walled plain Roche, and east-southeast of the equally ruined Bolyai....
, and to the north is Neujmin
Neujmin (crater)
Neujmin is a lunar crater on the Moon's far side. It is nearly attached to the west-southwest of the smaller crater Waterman, and lies to the southwest of the prominent Tsiolkovskiy....
.
This crater has been heavily eroded and worn by subsequent impacts, leaving only a deformed remnant of the original rim that is overlaid by a multitude of lesser craters. The most notable of these is Bolyai D along the northeast rim and Bolyai W to the northwest. The latter is actually a formation of multiply overlapping craters.
The interior of the crater is relatively level, but rough in places due to impacts that have reshaped the surface. Near the mid-point, and from there towards the western rim, is a section of floor that has been resurfaced 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...
flows. This area is smoother than the remainder of the floor, and has a lower albedo
Albedo
Albedo , or reflection coefficient, is the diffuse reflectivity or reflecting power of a surface. It is defined as the ratio of reflected radiation from the surface to incident radiation upon it...
, giving it a dark appearance.
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 Bolyai.| Bolyai | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| D | 32.5° S | 128.0° E | 34 km |
| K | 36.3° S | 126.8° E | 29 km |
| L | 36.3° S | 126.2° E | 73 km |
| Q | 36.1° S | 122.5° E | 28 km |
| W | 32.2° S | 123.9° E | 50 km |