The moon : $b a full description and map of its principal physical featuresElger, Thomas Gwyn
Science
The moon : $b a full description and map of its principal physical features
Elger, Thomas Gwyn
Moon
HERCULES.--The eastern companion of Atlas, a fine ring-plain, about 46
miles in diameter, with a complex border, rising some 11,000 feet above a
depressed floor. There are few formations of its class and size which
display so much detail in the shape of terraces, apparent landslips, and
variation in brightness. In the interior, S.E. of the centre, is a very
conspicuous crater, which is visible as a bright spot when the formation
itself is hardly traceable, two large craterlets slightly N. of the
centre, and several faint little spots on the east of them. The latter,
detected some years ago by Herr Hackel of Stuttgart, are arranged in the
form of a horse-shoe. There are two small contiguous craters on the S.E.
wall, one of which, a difficult object, was recently detected by Mr. W.H.
Maw, F.R.A.S. The well-known wedge-shaped protuberance on the S. wall is
due to a large irregular depression. On the bright inner slope of the N.
wall are manifest indications of a landslip.
ENDYMION.--A large walled-plain, 78 miles in diameter, enclosed by a
lofty, broad, bright border, surmounted in places by peaks which attain a
height of more than 10,000 feet above the interior, one on the W.
measuring more than 15,000 feet. The walls are much terraced and exhibit
two or three breaks. The dark floor appears to be devoid of detail.
Schmidt, however, draws two large irregular mounds E. of the centre, and
shows four narrow light streaks crossing the interior nearly parallel to
the longer axis of the formation.
DE LA RUE.--Notwithstanding its great extent, this formation hardly
deserves a distinctive name, as from the lowness of its border it is
scarcely traceable in its entirety except under very oblique light.
Schmidt, nevertheless, draws it with very definite walls, and shows
several ridges and small rings in the interior. Among these objects, a
little E. of the centre, there is a prominent peak.
STRABO.--A small walled-plain, 32 miles in diameter, connected with the
N. border of the last.
THALES.--A bright formation, also associated with the N. side of De la
Rue, adjoining Strabo on the N.E. Schmidt shows a minute hill in the
interior.
There are several unnamed formations, large and small, between De la Rue
and the limb, some of which are well worthy of examination.
WEST LONGITUDE 40 deg. TO 20 deg.
MASKELYNE.--A regular ring-plain, 19 miles in diameter, standing almost
isolated in the Mare Tranquilitatis. The floor, which includes a central
mountain, is depressed some 3000 feet below the surrounding surface.
There are prominent terraces on the inner slope of the walls. Schmidt
shows no craters upon them, but Madler draws a small one on the E., the
existence of which I can confirm.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account