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Credit & Copyright: Russell Croman
Explanation:
Anchored in the vast lava flows of the Moon's
Oceanus Procellarum lies
the Aristarchus Plateau.
Recorded from a backyard observatory on planet Earth,
this sharp,
amazingly colorful view
nicely captures the geologically
diverse area, including the brownish plateau, Aristarchus and
Herodotus craters, and the meandering Vallis Schroteri.
The bright impact crater at the corner of the plateau is
Aristarchus, a young crater
42 kilometers wide and 3 kilometers deep, surrounded by a
radial system of
light-colored rays.
Only slightly smaller,
lava flooded Herodotus crater is above and to the left.
A valley or rille feature likely carved by rapidly flowing lava
or a collapsed lava tunnel,
Vallis
Schroteri begins just to the right of
Herodotus and winds across the plateau for about 160 kilometers,
eventually turning toward the top of the picture and
the shadow of the lunar terminator.
Aristarchus Plateau itself is like a rectangular island
about 200 kilometers across, raised up to 2 kilometers or so
above the smooth surface of the lunar
Ocean of Storms.
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NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Moon - crater - Aristarchus - vallis
Publications with words: Moon - crater - Aristarchus - vallis
See also: