Kurchatov is a lunar impact crater that is located on the Moon's far side. It is just to the southwest of the crater Wiener, and farther to the southeast of Bridgman. A couple of crater diameters to the south of Kurchatov is the northern edge of the Mare Moscoviense.
 LRO WAC image | |
| Coordinates | 38°18′N 142°06′E / 38.3°N 142.1°E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 106 km |
| Depth | Unknown |
| Colongitude | 218° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Igor V. Kurchatov |
This is a worn and eroded crater formation, with a pair of small craters lying across the northern rim, and a generally worn and pitted rim and inner wall. A small crater lies along the northern inner wall and a bowl-shaped crater at the northwest edge of the interior floor. There is a small, elongated central ridge near the midpoint, and the interior floor is pitted with tiny craterlets.
Beginning to the south of Kurchatov and running toward the west-northwest is a crater chain designated Catena Kurchatov. The chain ends to the southeast of Becquerel.
Satellite craters
editBy convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Kurchatov.
| Kurchatov | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| T | 38.0° N | 138.0° E | 27 km |
| W | 40.4° N | 140.4° E | 33 km |
| X | 41.3° N | 139.9° E | 17 km |
| Z | 41.0° N | 141.8° E | 27 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.
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- 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.