Great Eastern ChainThe week of April 30 – May 6 takes us from Day 15 (essentially full moon) to Day 21. This week we will highlight a series of craters known as the Great Eastern Chain, viewable Tuesday night.

Sea of FertilityThe Great Eastern Chain: [SE/K-N16] There is a conspicuous chain of large craters, at one time referred to as the Great Western Chain1, which closely hugs the same meridian near the eastern limb of the Moon. They start on the southeastern shore of the Sea of Fertility and continue south2. The chain consists of Langrenus, Vendelinus, Petavius, and Furnerius. Although this unusual alignment is coincidental, it was once posited as evidence to support the endogenic theory of crater formation–the now disproven theory that the majority of craters were formed by volcanic forces originating from within the Moon.

Langrenus & Vendelinus: [SE/K-L16] These craters are the first two segments of the Great Eastern Chain. Langrenus and Vendelinus are two large 90-mi. craters located on the southeast shore of Fertility. One is considerably older than the other and appeared before the lava flows started. It should be easy for you to decide which is which.3

Even if you have a small telescope, there is much detail in the interior and on the outer ramparts of Langrenus to keep you busy. Because the appearance of the crater changes significantly with different lighting angles, make some drawings of what it looks like tonight and come back in two weeks to compare the views.

The younger crater Lamé intrudes on Vendelinus on its NE rim, and it is appropriately smaller. However, notice that Lamé, in turn, overlaps two smaller unnamed craters on its S.W. rim. This is unusual in that intruding craters are almost always smaller than the craters they impact on.

PetaviusPetavius: [SE/M16] This is one of the most fascinating craters on the Moon. It is an example of a floor-fractured crater (FFC), a type of crater that has been modified by later volcanism, uplift, and consequent fracturing. The floor of Petavius is nearly 1,000 feet higher near its center than around the edge! Is the curvature of the lunar surface apparent on its floor? Turbulence and volcanic upheaval from below split the central mountain (which rises to nearly one mile above the floor) and formed the rilles.

The principal rille, Rima Petavius, is so prominent that it can be seen with a 60mm refractor. It is a graben, an elongated depression that results when stresses open up two parallel cracks in the lunar crust and the terrain in between drops. The rille extends from the central peak to the southwest wall. There is actually a system of rilles on the floor. How many can you see with your instrument?

 FurneriusFurnerius: [SE/N16] This is the last of the craters that make up the Great Eastern Chain and it is very old, having formed before the impact that created the Nectaris basin 3.9 billion years ago. Although the walls have been battered down and show their age, there are still many complexities remaining which will reward careful observation. There are several craterlets of varying sizes on the floor of Furnerius, including a 30-mile rille extending from the north rim toward the southeast. Patrick Moore reports that there are fourteen large craters and several craterlets in its interior. (A more reasonable assessment would be there is one large crater and several craterlets.) Make a rough sketch of how many you can see, then come back in two weeks to see if you can add to the count. Can you match Patrick Moore’s observing skills?

 


1 In 1961 the International Astronomical Union (IAU) reversed the east-west directions on the Moon.

2 Its official (and somewhat cumbersome) name is Mare Fecunditatis. In this blog we prefer the simplicity of “Fertility.”

3 Because it is so heavily worn and has had time to acquire many overlapping smaller craters, Vendelinus is the older.

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It is highly recommended that you get a copy of Sky and Telescope’s Field Map of the Moon, the very finest Moon map available for use at the telescope. It is available for $10.95 at www.skyandtelescope.com and on Amazon. All features mentioned in this blog will be keyed to the grid on the Field Map and will look like this: Plato: [NW/D9]

Credits:
Courtesy of Gray Photography of Corpus Christi, Texas
Lunar photos: NASA / USGS / BMDO / LROC / ASU / DLR / LOLA / Moon Globe. Used by permission

Andrew Planck
Craters on the Moon: Floor-Fractured Crater and the Great Eastern Chain

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