Gardner (crater)

Summary

Gardner is a small lunar impact crater in the northeast part of the Moon. It was named after an American physicist Irvine Clifton Gardner in 1976.[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.

Gardner
Apollo 17 Mapping Camera image
Coordinates17°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

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 edit

  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
  • Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A. (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
  • Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
  • Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN 978-0-936389-27-1.
  • McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). "Lunar Nomenclature". Jonathan's Space Report. Retrieved 2007-10-24.
  • Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (1971). "Report on Lunar Nomenclature by the Working Group of Commission 17 of the IAU". Space Science Reviews. 12 (2): 136–186. Bibcode:1971SSRv...12..136M. doi:10.1007/BF00171763. S2CID 122125855.
  • Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-304-35469-6.
  • Price, Fred W. (1988). The Moon Observer's Handbook. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-33500-3.
  • Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 978-0-913135-17-4.
  • Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3.
  • Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
  • Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-193-1.

External links edit

Related articles edit

  • 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.