Widmannstätten (crater)

Crater on the Moon

Feature on the moon

Oblique view of Kiess and Widmannstätten from Apollo 12

Widmannstätten is a lunar impact crater in the southern part of the Mare Smythii, near the eastern limb of the Moon. The rim of this crater has a wide gap along the western side, where it is joined to the larger Kiess. There is also a gap in the northern rim where the crater floor is joined to the adjacent lunar mare. The dark interior floor of this formation has been flooded by lava, leaving a level interior surface and a shallow surviving rim.

The craters Kiess and Widmannstätten were referred to as Wright Brothers, such as by the crew of Apollo 17,^[2] prior to being officially named by the IAU in 1973.^[3]

References

1. LTO-81B3 Widmannstatten, Lunar Topographic Orthophotomap (LTO) Series
2. Apollo 17 Preliminary Science Report (NASA Special Publication 330). Scientific and Technical Information Office, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, D.C. 1973. Figure 28-9.
3. Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature, International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN, Kiess, Widmannstätten

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