Hertzsprung (crater)
Hertzsprung is a basin of Nectarian age.
The outer rim of Hertzsprung has been damaged and modified by several notable impacts (mentioned above) and a number of smaller craters. A chain of small craters, designated Catena Lucretius, begins at the southeastern outer rim and proceeds toward the west-northwest until it connects with the perimeter of the inner basin. This inner area is less rough than the outer ring of the floor, and is surrounded by a circular range of ridges. The inner perimeter is also pierced by several craters, including Hertzsprung D along the eastern portion and Hertzsprung S on the western side. Nor is the interior of the inner basin free from impacts, including K, H, X, and L, listed in the table below.
At the center of the basin is a mass concentration (mascon), or gravitational high. The mascon was first identified by Doppler tracking of the Lunar Prospector spacecraft.
The equator of the Moon passes through this formation, being located to the south of the midpoint and cutting through the central basin.
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Topographic map -
Gravity map based on GRAIL -
Oblique Lunar Orbiter 5 image -
Another view from Lunar Orbiter 5
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Satellite craters
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Hertzsprung.
| Hertzsprung | Coordinates | Diameter, km |
|---|---|---|
| D | 3°26′N 126°12′W / 3.43°N 126.20°W | 48 |
| H | 1°16′S 125°09′W / 1.26°S 125.15°W | 20 |
| K | 0°40′S 128°29′W / 0.67°S 128.48°W | 27 |
| L | 0°13′N 128°42′W / 0.22°N 128.70°W | 35 |
| M | 7°33′S 129°47′W / 7.55°S 129.79°W | 36 |
| P | 0°08′S 130°14′W / 0.14°S 130.24°W | 22 |
| R | 0°16′S 132°48′W / 0.27°S 132.80°W | 30 |
| S | 0°27′N 133°24′W / 0.45°N 133.40°W | 49 |
| V | 5°04′N 134°10′W / 5.07°N 134.17°W | 40 |
| X | 3°41′N 130°05′W / 3.68°N 130.08°W | 24 |
| Y | 8°46′N 131°59′W / 8.77°N 131.99°W | 25 |
2022 Long March 3C third stage impact
In February 2022, after a mis-identification, it was announced that a Long March 3C third stage from the 2014 Chang'e 5 T1 mission, should have crashed in or near the crater on 4 March 2022, 12:25:58 UTC, at latitude +5.18, east longitude 233.55, plus or minus a few seconds and a few kilometers. Confirmation of the impact could be acquired through satellites like the LRO. The event showed how hard it is to track small objects in deep space. Manfred Memorial Moon Mission, a private moon probe developed by LuxSpace was attached to the third stage and also crashed with it.
In June 2022 NASA released a picture of the crater produced by the purported rocket body. Unusually it is a double lobed crater. Previous craters created by rocket bodies on the Moon have been large single craters. It was found near the Hertzsprung D crater at coordinates (5.226 degrees north, 234.486 degrees east, 1,863 meters elevation).
References
- ^ Stockstill, K. R.; Spudis, P. D. (March 16–20, 1998). Geology and Deposits of the Hertzsprung Basin, Lunar Far Side (PDF). 29th Annual Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. Houston, TX (published March 1998). Bibcode:1998LPI....29.1236S.
- ^ The geologic history of the Moon. USGS Professional Paper 1348. By Don E. Wilhelms, John F. McCauley, and Newell J. Trask. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington: 1987. Table 9-3.
- ^ A. S. Konopliv; A. B. Binder; L. L. Hood; A. B. Kucinskas; W. L. Sjogren & J. G. Williams (1998). "Improved Gravity Field of the Moon from Lunar Prospector". Science. 281 (5382): 1476–1480. Bibcode:1998Sci...281.1476K. doi:10.1126/science.281.5382.1476. PMID 9727968.
- ^ "Pseudo-MPEC for 2014-065B = NORAD 40284 = Chang'e 5-T1 booster = lunar impactor on 2022 Mar 04". projectpluto.com. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
- ^ Garner, Rob (2022-06-23). "Rocket Impact Site on Moon Seen by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter". NASA. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
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