Pikel'ner (crater)
Encyclopedia
Pikel'ner is an impact crater
on the Moon
's far side. It lies to the southeast of the larger crater Van der Waals
, and to the north of the Vallis Planck
cleft. Pikel'ner overlies more than half of the satellite crater Pikel'ner Y to the north. Almost contacting the southwestern outer rim of Pikel'ner is a larger concentric crater formation with the smaller crater of the pair, Pikel'ner S, along the northern edge of the pair.
The outer rim of Pikel'ner is well-defined with little erosion, giving it the appearance of a relatively young feature. The interior floor is somewhat uneven, possibly due to deposits of ejecta or fall-back material. It is free of impacts of note within the interior.
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 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...
's far side. It lies to the southeast of the larger crater Van der Waals
Van der Waals (crater)
Van der Waals is a lunar crater on the far side of the Moon. It is a heavily eroded feature with an irregular outer rim. The edge is lowest along the southern side where it is little more than a circular crest along the ground. It is more developed along the northern side, but the rim is notched...
, and to the north of the Vallis Planck
Vallis Planck
Vallis Planck is a long, linear valley located on the far side of the Moon. It is oriented radially to the huge Schrödinger basin, and was most likely formed by that impact...
cleft. Pikel'ner overlies more than half of the satellite crater Pikel'ner Y to the north. Almost contacting the southwestern outer rim of Pikel'ner is a larger concentric crater formation with the smaller crater of the pair, Pikel'ner S, along the northern edge of the pair.
The outer rim of Pikel'ner is well-defined with little erosion, giving it the appearance of a relatively young feature. The interior floor is somewhat uneven, possibly due to deposits of ejecta or fall-back material. It is free of impacts of note within the interior.
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 Pikel'ner.| Pikel'ner | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| F | 48.0° S | 127.6° E | 30 km |
| G | 49.1° S | 128.3° E | 24 km |
| K | 50.3° S | 124.8° E | 36 km |
| S | 48.7° S | 120.2° E | 62 km |
| Y | 47.4° S | 123.1° E | 52 km |