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Copernicus crater from Apollo 12 '' NASA  photo''
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97
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N
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200
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93 km
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38 km
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20
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is a prominent
Lunar Impact Crater located on the eastern
Oceanus Procellarum . It visible with
Binoculars slightly northwest of the center of the Moon's Earth-facing hemisphere. South of the crater is the
Mare Insularum , and to the south-south west is
Reinhold Crater . North of Copernicus are the
Montes Carpatus , which lie at the south edge of
Mare Imbrium . West of Copernicus is a group of dispersed lunar hills.
The crater Copernicus is estimated to be about 800 million years old, the time marking the start of the ''Copernican era'' in the
Lunar Geologic Timescale . Due to its relative youth, the crater has received very little erosion and it remains sharp and well-defined.
The circular rim has a discernable d inner wall and a 30-km wide, sloping
Rampart that descends nearly a
Kilometer to the surrounding
''maria'' . There are three distinct terraces visible, and arc-shaped
Landslide s due to slumping of the inner wall as the crater debris subsided.
Most likely due to its recent formation, the crater floor has not been flooded by
Lava . The terrain along the bottom is hilly in the southern half while the north is relatively smooth. The central peaks consist of three isolated mountainous rises climbing as high as 1.2 km above the floor. These peaks are separated from each other by valleys, and they form a rough line along an east-west axis. Infrared observations of these peaks during the 1980s determined that they were primarily composed of the
Mafic form of
Olivine .
The
Crater Rays spread as far as 800 kilometers across the surrounding ''maria'', overlaying rays from the
Aristarchus and
Kepler craters. The rays are less distinct than the long, linear rays about
Tycho Crater , instead forming a nebulous pattern with plumy markings. In multiple locations the rays lay at glancing angles, instead of forming a true radial dispersal. An extensive pattern of smaller secondary craters can also be observed surrounding Copernicus, a detail that was depicted in a map by
Giovanni Cassini in
1680 . Some of these secondary craters form sinuous chains in the ''ejecta''.
The Copernicus crater was given its name by
Giovanni Riccioli , an
Italian Jesuit who in conformity with church doctrine publicly opposed the
Heliocentric system revived by
Copernicus . Riccioli is quoted as having "flung Copernicus into the Ocean of Storms" (
Oceanus Procellarum ); nevertheless in naming one of the most prominent craters on the Moon for the man, he may have indicated his true intent. Later the crater was nick-named "the Monarch of the Moon" by
Thomas Gwyn Elger .
In
1966 the crater was photographed from an oblique angle by the
Lunar Orbiter 2 . At the time this detailed image of the lunar surface was termed the 'Picture of the Century'.
. ''
NASA photo.'']]
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 Copernicus crater.
- Pieters, C. M., "Copernicus crater central peak - Lunar mountain of unique composition", ''Science'', vol. 215, Jan. 1, 1982, p. 59-61.
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