Abel is an ancient lunar

Moon

The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

 crater

Impact crater

In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...

 that lies near the southeast limb of the Moon

Moon

The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

's near side. It is located to the south of the crater Barnard

Barnard (lunar crater)

Barnard is a lunar crater that is located near the eastern limb of the Moon. It is attached to the southeast rim of the large crater Humboldt, and Abel lies directly to the south. To the northeast is the crater Curie, while to the southeast is the Mare Australe.The formation has been reshaped and...

, at the northwest edge of the Mare Australe

Mare Australe

Mare Australe is a lunar mare located in the southeastern hemisphere of the Moon. It is 603 kilometers in diameter, overlapping the near and far sides of the Moon. Smooth, dark volcanic basalt lines the bottom of the mare...

.

The rim of Abel is heavily eroded and distorted in shape, forming a somewhat polygon

Polygon

In geometry a polygon is a flat shape consisting of straight lines that are joined to form a closed chain orcircuit.A polygon is traditionally a plane figure that is bounded by a closed path, composed of a finite sequence of straight line segments...

al figure. It is incised and overlaid by past impacts. The satellite crater Abel A overlies the southern rim, while Abel M and Abel L intrude into the western wall.

The eastern floor of Abel has been resurfaced by past lava

Lava

Lava refers both to molten rock expelled by a volcano during an eruption and the resulting rock after solidification and cooling. This molten rock is formed in the interior of some planets, including Earth, and some of their satellites. When first erupted from a volcanic vent, lava is a liquid at...

 flows, leaving a relatively smooth, flat surface with a low albedo

Albedo

Albedo , or reflection coefficient, is the diffuse reflectivity or reflecting power of a surface. It is defined as the ratio of reflected radiation from the surface to incident radiation upon it...

. The remains of a small crater rim protrude near the northeast wall. The western floor is rougher in texture and matches the albedo of the surrounding surface.

The crater was named for the Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel

Niels Henrik Abel

Niels Henrik Abel was a Norwegian mathematician who proved the impossibility of solving the quintic equation in radicals.-Early life:...

.

Satellite craters

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 Abel.

Abel	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
A	36.6° S	86.0° E	19 km
B	36.7° S	82.8° E	41 km
C	36.0° S	81.0° E	31 km
D	37.7° S	87.7° E	30 km
E	37.8° S	86.5° E	13 km
J	35.5° S	79.0° E	11 km
K	35.0° S	77.2° E	9 km
L	34.4° S	82.6° E	67 km
M	32.2° S	83.6° E	81 km