Kane (crater)

Kane
Location of the lunar crater Kane.
Coordinates63°06′N 26°06′E / 63.1°N 26.1°E / 63.1; 26.1
Diameter55 km
Depth3.3 km
Colongitude335° at sunrise
EponymElisha K. Kane
View from Lunar Orbiter 4
Oblique view also from Lunar Orbiter 4

Kane is the walled remains of a lunar impact crater that has been flooded by lava from Mare Frigoris to the south, and it lies on the northeast edge of this mare. The crater lies midway between the craters C. Mayer to the west and Democritus in the east. To the north-northeast is the crater Moigno.

The floor of this crater is flat and covered in lava flow, with no significant craters within the outer rim. Nothing remains of a central peak, if it ever possessed such a feature. The outer wall displays gaps along the south where it joins the Mare Frigoris. The remainder of the rim is circular but displays wear.

The crater is named after the American Arctic explorer Elisha Kent Kane (1820-1857).

Satellite craters

[edit]

By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Kane.

Kane Latitude Longitude Diameter
A 61.2° N 27.0° E 5 km
F 59.6° N 23.1° E 7 km
G 59.2° N 25.3° E 10 km

References

[edit]
  • Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A. (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
  • Blue, Jennifer (July 25, 2007). "Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature". USGS. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
  • 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.