Hall (lunar crater)
Encyclopedia
Hall is a lunar
crater
named in honor of American astronomer Asaph Hall
that is located in the southeast part of the Lacus Somniorum
, a lunar mare
in the northeast part of the Moon
. This feature can be found to the west of the prominent walled plain Posidonius
. Just to the south, and nearly attached to the southern rim of Hall is the smaller crater G. Bond
.
This crater formation has been significantly disintegrated by smaller impacts around the outer rim, leaving a wall that is deeply notched and incised. There is a gap in the western rim through which the interior has been flooded and resurfaced by layers of basalt
ic lava
. Thus all that remains of the original crater is an irregular, crescent-shaped formation along the southern edge of the Lacus Somniorum. The southern rim is attached to the rough terrain to the south of the mare, and the irregular satellite crater G. Bond G is attached to the southeast rim.
Passing across the open mouth of this crater is the rille
named Rima G. Bond (after the nearby crater), a wide cleft in the surface of the mare. This feature begins to the north of Hall and travels to the south-southwest, gradually bending back to the south–southeast. It passes through a section of raised terrain along the southern edge of the mare, and this rise joins the southern rim of Hall and encloses G. Bond.
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...
named in honor of American astronomer Asaph Hall
Asaph Hall
Asaph Hall III was an American astronomer who is most famous for having discovered the moons of Mars in 1877...
that is located in the southeast part of the Lacus Somniorum
Lacus Somniorum
Lacus Somniorum is a plain located in the northeastern part of the Moon's near side. It is located at selenographic coordinates 38.0° N, 29.2° E, and has a diameter of 384 kilometers...
, a lunar 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...
in the northeast part 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...
. This feature can be found to the west of the prominent walled plain Posidonius
Posidonius (crater)
Posidonius is a lunar impact crater that is located on the western edge of Mare Serenitatis, to the south of Lacus Somniorum. The crater Chacornac is attached to the southeast rim, and to the north is Daniell....
. Just to the south, and nearly attached to the southern rim of Hall is the smaller crater G. Bond
G. Bond (crater)
G. Bond is a small lunar impact crater to the south of the Lacus Somniorum, a small lunar mare in the northeast part of the Moon's near side. It lies to the east of the larger crater Posidonius, and to the south of the flooded crater remnant Hall...
.
This crater formation has been significantly disintegrated by smaller impacts around the outer rim, leaving a wall that is deeply notched and incised. There is a gap in the western rim through which the interior has been flooded and resurfaced by layers of basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
ic 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...
. Thus all that remains of the original crater is an irregular, crescent-shaped formation along the southern edge of the Lacus Somniorum. The southern rim is attached to the rough terrain to the south of the mare, and the irregular satellite crater G. Bond G is attached to the southeast rim.
Passing across the open mouth of this crater 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...
named Rima G. Bond (after the nearby crater), a wide cleft in the surface of the mare. This feature begins to the north of Hall and travels to the south-southwest, gradually bending back to the south–southeast. It passes through a section of raised terrain along the southern edge of the mare, and this rise joins the southern rim of Hall and encloses G. Bond.
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 Hall.| Hall | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | 34.7° N | 35.8° E | 6 km |
| J | 35.4° N | 36.9° E | 8 km |
| K | 35.5° N | 34.2° E | 8 km |
| X | 35.7° N | 37.8° E | 4 km |
| Y | 36.4° N | 36.9° E | 4 km |