Houtermans (crater)
Encyclopedia
Houtermans is a lunar
crater
that is located beside the eastern limb of the Moon
, in the region of the surface where visibility is affected by libration
. It lies to the east of the crater Kreiken
, and south of the crater pairing of Helmert
and Kao
.
This is an elongated formation created by two or more merged crater formations. The crater formation is twice as wide in longitude
as it is in latitude
, with the long axis oriented toward the west-northwest. The rim is worn and eroded, with a tiny crater along the northern-most part of the rim, and an inward bulge along the northern half of the inner rim about 60% of the distance from west to east. The interior floor is relatively featureless, with only a few tiny craterlets.
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 is located beside the eastern 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...
, in the region of the surface where visibility is affected by libration
Libration
In astronomy, libration is an oscillating motion of orbiting bodies relative to each other, notably including the motion of the Moon relative to Earth, or of Trojan asteroids relative to planets.-Lunar libration:...
. It lies to the east of the crater Kreiken
Kreiken (crater)
Kreiken is a small lunar crater that is located near the eastern limb of the Moon. It lies to the south of the crater Kiess and the Mare Smythii. Just to the south-southwest is the smaller crater Elmer, and to the west is Dale....
, and south of the crater pairing of Helmert
Helmert (crater)
Helmert is a lunar crater at the southern edge of the Mare Smythii. It lies near the eastern limb of the Moon, and from the Earth it is seen nearly from the side. The visibility of this feature can be strongly affected by libration of the Moon in its orbit....
and Kao
Kao (crater)
Kao is a small lunar crater that is located near the eastern limb of the Moon. It lies near the southern edge of the Mare Smythii, a lunar mare that continues onto the far side of the surface. This crater lies to the east-southeast of the crater Widmannstätten...
.
This is an elongated formation created by two or more merged crater formations. The crater formation is twice as wide in longitude
Longitude
Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....
as it is in latitude
Latitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
, with the long axis oriented toward the west-northwest. The rim is worn and eroded, with a tiny crater along the northern-most part of the rim, and an inward bulge along the northern half of the inner rim about 60% of the distance from west to east. The interior floor is relatively featureless, with only a few tiny craterlets.