Delambre (crater)
Encyclopedia
Delambre is a lunar
impact crater
that lies to the southwest of Mare Tranquillitatis
, in the central highland region. To the west is the crater pair of Theon Junior
and Theon Senior
, the latter being more distant and located to the northwest. It is 52 kilometers in diameter and 3.5 kilometers in depth. It was named for Jean Baptiste Joseph Delambre, an 18th-century French astronomer.
The rim of Delambre has a terraced interior, with a tiny craterlet lying along the northern rim. In the south is a low cut forming a slight notch. The crater interior has an irregular surface. It has high walls, with some peaks reaching 15,000 feet. Delambre was the landing site of the unmanned probe Ranger 8
, which took photographs of the crater. Delambre is from the Upper Imbrian
epoch, which lasted from 3.8 to 3.2 billion years ago.
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 lies to the southwest 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...
, in the central highland region. To the west is the crater pair of Theon Junior
Theon Junior (crater)
Theon Junior is a lunar impact crater that is located just to the west-southwest of the crater Delambre. It forms a matching pair with Theon Senior, only a couple of crater diameters to the north-northwest. The crater is circular and bowl-shaped, with a small floor at the bottom of the high,...
and Theon Senior
Theon Senior (crater)
Theon Senior is a lunar impact crater that is located to the northwest of the crater Delambre, and south of D'Arrest. It forms a matching pair with Theon Junior, about two crater diameters to the south-southeast. The satellite crater Theon Senior A can be found to the north...
, the latter being more distant and located to the northwest. It is 52 kilometers in diameter and 3.5 kilometers in depth. It was named for Jean Baptiste Joseph Delambre, an 18th-century French astronomer.
The rim of Delambre has a terraced interior, with a tiny craterlet lying along the northern rim. In the south is a low cut forming a slight notch. The crater interior has an irregular surface. It has high walls, with some peaks reaching 15,000 feet. Delambre was the landing site of the unmanned probe Ranger 8
Ranger 8
Ranger 8 was a spacecraft designed to achieve a lunar impact trajectory and to transmit high-resolution photographs of the lunar surface during the final minutes of flight up to impact. The spacecraft carried six television vidicon cameras, two wide angle and four narrow angle to accomplish these...
, which took photographs of the crater. Delambre is from the Upper Imbrian
Upper Imbrian
In the Lunar geologic timescale, the Late Imbrian epoch occurred between 3800 million years ago to about 3200 million years ago. It was the epoch during which the mantle below the lunar basins partially melted and filled them with basalt...
epoch, which lasted from 3.8 to 3.2 billion years ago.
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 Delambre.| Delambre | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| B | 1.7° S | 19.6° E | 10 km |
| D | 1.1° S | 17.6° E | 5 km |
| F | 1.0° S | 19.3° E | 5 km |
| H | 1.0° S | 16.4° E | 16 km |
| J | 0.3° S | 16.8° E | 12 km |