Gardner (crater)

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Gardner
Gardner crater AS17-M-1216.jpg
Apollo 17 Mapping Camera image
Coordinates17°42′N 33°48′E / 17.7°N 33.8°E / 17.7; 33.8Coordinates: 17°42′N 33°48′E / 17.7°N 33.8°E / 17.7; 33.8
Diameter18 km
Depth3.0 km
Colongitude327° at sunrise
EponymIrvine C. Gardner
Oblique view from Apollo 15
The Gardner Megadome, from Apollo 17

Gardner is a small lunar impact crater in the northeast part of the Moon and is named after an American physicist Irvine Clifton Gardner.[1] It lies due east of the crater Vitruvius, in a section of rough terrain north of the Mare Tranquillitatis. Gardner was previously designated Vitruvius A before being given its present name by the IAU. To the northeast of Gardner is the larger crater Maraldi.

It is a circular crater with sloping inner walls and an interior floor that occupies about half the total crater diameter. The southern half of the floor has a slight rise before reaching the inner wall. The crater is not significantly eroded, and the outer rim is relatively sharp and well-defined. The most distinctive feature is a row of four rounded hills along the northern floor of the crater.

To the south is an elevated area unofficially known as the Gardner Megadome.[2] In the vicinity of the dome are satellite craters including Vitruvius B, H, and T, and Maraldi D.

References[]

  1. ^ "Gardner (crater)". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. ^ The Lamont - Gardner Megadome Alignment: A Lunar Volcano-Tectonic Structure? Charles A. Wood, with images by Wes Higgins, KC Pau and Giorgio Mengoli, Managua Office, Planetary Science Institute, Tucson, AZ 85719. PDF


External links[]

Related articles[]

  • Wood, Chuck (August 16, 2004). "Megadome". Lunar Photo of the Day. Retrieved September 27, 2017. - also featuring the surrounding craters
  • Wood, Chuck (September 26, 2004). "Astonishing Megadome". Lunar Photo of the Day. Retrieved August 17, 2017.
  • Wood, Chuck (July 28, 2014). "Quantified Mountain". Lunar Photo of the Day. Retrieved August 17, 2017.
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