The Lunar Equator

The equator of the Moon is defined by its rotational axis. It is the great circle contained by the plane that is perpendicular to the line connecting the north and south poles of the Moon.

Map of the Moon (nearside) with selenographic coordinate lines (latitude and longitude)

Here is a list of named lunar features through which the Moon’s equator passes, from lunar east to lunar west on the part of the Moon visible from the Earth.

Remember, lunar longitude is opposite the direction in the sky. East longitude is the west/right side of the moon, and west longitude is the east/left side of the moon as viewed from the northern hemisphere of the Earth.

The diameter of each feature is included, followed by the depth of the feature, where available.

Crater Wyld
Wyld
Center: 98.101˚ E, 1.416˚ S
Range: 96.395˚ - 99.806˚ E, 3.121˚ S - 0.289˚N
Crater; libration zone
58 mi
James Hart Wyld (1913-1953), American rocket engineer
Dorsum Cloos
Center: 90.410˚ E, 1.149˚ N
Range: 90.387˚ - 91.144˚ E, 0.268˚ S - 2.576˚ N
Wrinkle ridge; libration zone
64 mi
Hans Cloos (1885-1951), German geologist
Mare Smythii, “Smyth’s Sea”
Mare Smythii
Center: 87.049˚ E, 1.709˚ S
Range: 80.941˚ - 92.719˚ E, 7.456˚ S - 4.496˚ N
Mare; libration zone; Smyth's Sea
232 mi, 3.1 mi
William Henry Smyth (1788-1865), English naval officer and astronomer
Craters Schubert J, Jenkins, Schubert X, and Nobili
Schubert J
Center: 78.935˚ E, 0.012˚ S
Range: 78.579˚ - 79.292˚ E, 0.344˚ S - 0.320˚ N
Crater
12 mi
Friedrich Theodor von Schubert (1758-1825), German astronomer & geographer 
Jenkins
Center: 78.041˚ E, 0.372˚ N
Range: 77.418˚ - 78.663˚ E, 0.251˚ S - 0.994˚ N
Crater
24 mi, 1.9 mi
Louise Freeland Jenkins (1888-1970), American astronomer
Schubert X
Center: 76.750˚ E, 0.310˚ N
Range: 75.940˚ - 77.561˚ E, 0.501˚ S - 1.121˚ N
Crater
32 mi
Friedrich Theodor von Schubert (1758-1825), German astronomer & geographer
Nobili
Center: 75.949˚ E, 0.166˚ N
Range: 75.260˚ - 76.638˚ E, 0.523˚ S - 0.855˚ N
Crater
26 mi, 2.4 mi
Leopoldo Nobili (1784-1835), Italian physicist
Craters Maclaurin X and Maclaurin O
Maclaurin X
Center: 68.708˚ E, 0.091˚ N
Range: 68.403˚ - 69.014˚ E, 0.214˚ S - 0.397˚ N
Crater
15 mi
Colin Maclaurin (1698-1746), Scottish mathematician
Maclaurin O
Center: 67.557˚ E, 0.135˚ S
Range: 66.873˚ - 68.241˚ E, 0.819˚ S - 0.548˚ N
Crater
23 mi
Colin Maclaurin (1698-1746), Scottish mathematician
Mare Spumans, “The Foaming Sea”
Mare Spumans
Center: 65.303˚ E, 1.302˚ N
Range: 63.613˚ - 66.733˚ E, 1.062˚ S - 3.722˚ N
Mare
87 mi
The Foaming Sea
Crater Webb C
Webb C
Center: 63.833˚ E, 0.149˚ N
Range: 63.267˚ - 64.398˚ E, 0.247˚ S - 0.544˚ N
Crater
21 mi
Thomas William Webb (1807-1885), English astronomer
Sinus Successus
Center: 58.520˚ E, 1.124˚ N
Range: 56.519˚ - 60.188˚ E, 0.861˚ S - 2.872˚ N
Bay
82 mi
Bay of Success
Mare Fecunditatis, “Sea of Fertility”
Mare Fecunditatis
Center: 53.669˚ E, 7.835˚ S
Range: 40.771˚ - 63.340˚ E, 21.695˚ S - 6.112˚ N
Mare
429 mi, 1.1 mi
Sea of Fertility
Craterlet Taruntius P is on the left (Taruntius K is at right)
Taruntius P
Center: 51.585˚ E, 0.060˚ N
Range: 51.473˚ - 51.696˚ E, 0.051˚ S - 0.172˚ N
Craterlet
5 mi, 0.9 mi
Lucius Tarutius Firmanus (fl. 86 B.C.), Roman philosopher, mathematician, and astrologer
Wrinkle ridge Dorsum Cayeux, with craterlets Taruntius P (left) and Taruntius K (right) in the lower left
Dorsum Cayeux
Center: 51.220˚ E, 0.763˚ N
Range: 50.922˚ - 52.000˚ E, 0.598˚ S - 2.113˚ N
Wrinkle ridge
59 mi
Lucien Cayeux (1864-1944), French sedimentary petrographer
Wrinkle ridges Dorsa Cato (north is to the right in this Apollo 11 view)
Dorsa Cato
Center: 47.701˚ E, 0.213˚ N
Range: 46.605˚ - 49.599˚ E, 1.165˚ S - 2.233˚ N
Wrinkle ridges
87 mi
Marcus Porcius Cato (234-149 B.C.), Roman soldier, senator, and historian
Rille Rima Messier
Rima Messier
Center: 44.545˚ E, 0.756˚ S
Range: 43.357˚ - 45.581˚ E, 1.561˚ S - 0.015˚ N
Rille
62 mi
Charles Messier (1730-1817), French astronomer
Crater Lubbock R
Lubbock R
Center: 40.453˚ E, 0.167˚ S
Range: 40.060˚ - 40.845˚ E, 0.559˚ S - 0.225˚ N
Crater
15 mi
Sir John William Lubbock (1803-1865), English banker, barrister, mathematician, and astronomer
Maskelyne T & Maskelyne A (click on image for higher resolution view)
Maskelyne T
Center: 36.593˚ E, 0.040˚ S
Range: 36.507˚ - 36.678˚ E, 0.125˚ S - 0.046˚ N
Craterlet
3 mi
Nevil Maskelyne (1732-1811), English astronomer
Maskelyne A
Center: 34.089˚ E, 0.032˚ N
Range: 33.603˚ - 34.574˚ E, 0.453˚ S - 0.517˚ N
Crater
18 mi
Nevil Maskelyne (1732-1811), English astronomer
Mare Tranquillitatis, “Sea of Tranquility”
Mare Tranquillitatis
Center: 30.835˚ E, 8.349˚ N
Range: 16.924˚ - 45.490˚ E, 4.051˚ S - 19.375˚ N
Mare
544 mi
Sea of Tranquility
Rimae Hypatia
Center: 22.777˚ E, 0.340˚ S
Range: 19.690˚ - 25.975˚ E, 1.406˚ S - 0.672˚ N
Rilles
128 mi
Hypatia (c.370-415), Alexandrian philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer
Craters Lade A and Lade B
Lade A
Center: 12.726˚ E, 0.161˚ S
Range: 11.773˚ - 13.680˚ E, 1.114˚ S - 0.793˚ N
Crater
35 mi
Heinrich Eduard von Lade (1817-1904), German banker and amateur astronomer
Lade B
Center: 9.796˚ E, 0.016˚ N
Range: 9.412˚ - 10.180˚ E, 0.368˚ S - 0.399˚ N
Crater
15 mi
Heinrich Eduard von Lade (1817-1904), German banker and amateur astronomer
Craters Rhaeticus F, Rhaeticus, and Rhaeticus L
Rhaeticus F
Center: 6.438˚ E, 0.060˚ S
Range: 6.134˚ - 6.742˚ E, 0.364˚ S - 0.244˚ N
Crater
11 mi
Georg Joachim Rheticus (1514-1574), Austria-born astronomer & mathematician
Rhaeticus
Center: 4.924˚ E, 0.032˚ N
Range: 4.192˚ - 5.657˚ E, 0.701˚ S - 0.764˚ N
Crater
30 x 27 mi, 1.0 mi
Georg Joachim Rheticus (1514-1574), Austria-born astronomer & mathematician
Rhaeticus L
Center: 3.484˚ E, 0.205˚ N
Range: 3.257˚ - 3.711˚ E, 0.022˚ S - 0.432˚ N
Crater
9 mi
Georg Joachim Rheticus (1514-1574), Austria-born astronomer & mathematician
Sinus Medii, “Bay of the Center”; this feature is closest to the center of the Moon as seen from Earth
Sinus Medii
Center: 1.027˚ E, 1.634˚ N
Range: 3.371˚ W - 5.551˚ E, 2.048˚ S - 4.641˚ N
Bay
178 mi
Bay of the Center
Crater Mösting E
Mösting E
Center: 4.591˚ W, 0.178˚ N
Range: 5.189˚ - 3.992˚ W, 0.421˚ S - 0.777˚ N
Crater
27 mi
Johan Sigismund von Møsting (1759-1843), Danish banker, finance minister, and astronomy enthusiast
Crater Sömmering
Sömmering
Center: 7.526˚ W, 0.193˚ N
Range: 7.987˚ - 7.065˚ W, 0.268˚ S - 0.654˚ N
Crater
17 mi, 0.8 mi
Samuel Thomas von Sömmering (1755–1830),German physician and anatomist
Crater Lansberg
Lansberg
Center: 26.627˚ W, 0.312˚ S
Range: 27.266˚ - 25.988˚ W, 0.951˚ S - 0.327˚ N
Crater
24 mi, 1.9 mi
Philippe van Lansbergen (1561-1632), Dutch astronomer and mathematician
Mare Insularum
Center: 30.640˚ W, 7.792˚ N
Range: 39.195˚ - 22.153˚ W, 0.596˚ S - 16.345˚ N
Mare
318 mi
Sea of Islands
Oceanus Procellarum
Center: 56.677˚ W, 20.671˚ N
Range: 81.084˚ - 26.850˚ W, 16.266˚ S - 57.433˚ N
Mare
1611 x 353 mi
Ocean of Storms
Crater Lohrmann D cut through by one of the rilles of Rimae Hevelius (arrow points to another part of Rimae Hevelius)
Lohrmann D
Center: 65.273˚ W, 0.141˚ S
Range: 65.442˚ - 65.104˚ W, 0.310˚ S - 0.028˚ N
Crater
7 mi
Wilhelm Gotthelf Lohrmann (1796-1840), German selenographer
Rimae Hevelius
Center: 66.377˚ W, 0.809˚ N
Range: 67.849˚ - 63.582˚ W, 1.284˚ S - 2.956˚ N
Rilles
113 mi
Johannes Hevelius (1611-1687), Polish astronomer
Crater Lohrmann
Lohrmann
Center: 67.383˚ W, 0.440˚ S
Range: 67.898˚ - 66.867˚ W, 0.955˚ S - 0.075˚ N
Crater
19 mi, 1.0 mi
Wilhelm Gotthelf Lohrmann (1796-1840), German selenographer
Rimae Riccioli
Center: 73.071˚ W, 1.515˚ S
Range: 76.809˚ - 68.566˚ W, 4.754˚ S - 1.247˚ N
Rilles
249 mi
Giovanni Battista Riccioli (1598-1671), Italian astronomer
Crater Schlüter P
Schlüter P
Center: 85.208˚ W, 0.054˚ N
Range: 85.550˚ - 84.865˚ W, 0.289˚ S - 0.397˚ N
Crater; libration zone
12 mi
Heinrich Schlüter (1815-1844), German astronomer

Now that we’ve taken a tour of nearside features along the equator, let us turn to the lunar north and south celestial poles. As you know, the Earth’s north celestial pole (NCP) is currently located quite close to Polaris. However, on the Moon, the NCP is located in Draco near the Cat’s Eye Nebula (NGC 6543), about two-thirds of the way between Polaris and the center of the Head of Draco.

The Moon’s NCP is located near the Cat’s Eye Nebula (NGC 6543), a fine planetary nebula in Draco.

The Moon’s south celestial pole (SCP) is located in the constellation Dorado inside of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). If you were stationed at the south pole of the Moon, you would see the Large Magellanic Cloud directly overhead at all times!

The Moon’s SCP is located in the constellation Dorado within the Large Magellanic Cloud.

The Moon has many fascinating places, tempting us to explore. Some of them have quite interesting names. One of my favorites is Lacus Perseverantiae, Lake of Persistence. Its location is 62.0˚ E and 8.0˚ N. See if you can find it here. (Hint: under Layers : Overlays select Nomenclature, and under Settings select Show Graticule.) Have fun exploring!

References

Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who’s Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN978-0-936389-27-1.

1:1 Million-Scale Maps of the Moon, IAU/USGS/NASA. https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Page/Moon1to1MAtlas.

Virtual Moon Atlas 6.0 Pro. Computer software. https://ap-i.net/avl/en/start.

Lunar Maria

António Cidadão, of Oeiras, Portugal, many years ago produced a wonderful set of images showing the location of each mare on the Moon. His website has not been updated since 1999 and the contact email address provided there is no longer valid, and even after a thorough Google search I can find no way to contact him to ask permission to link images here to his site. Even worse, because his hosting site is not secure (http: instead of https:), WordPress does not allow me to link directly to his images so I had to put copies into my media library. Please know that the images shown below are all copyrighted by António Cidadão.

Each image shows north is up and west is to the left. This is direction of increasing longitude and therefore west on the Moon, but in our sky, east is to the left. In other words, these annotated images of the Moon are correctly oriented as they would appear to the unaided eye in the sky in the northern hemisphere. In the rest of this article, we will use the moon-centric east-west convention that Cidadão indicates in his image diagrams.

Let’s take a look at each of the lunar maria from moon-west to moon-east. Their fanciful names were mostly given (and codified in 1651) by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Battista Riccioli (1598-1671). Riccioli chose names related to weather, as it was then believed that the Moon, the closest celestial body to the Earth, exerted an influence on the Earth’s weather. This is perhaps not at all surprising given that the phenomenon of tides had been known since antiquity.

Most of the nearside west portion of the Moon is covered by a mare that is so large that it is given a unique designation: Oceanus for “ocean”.

Oceanus Procellarum, the “Ocean of Storms”

Oceanus Procellarum contains the famously bright crater Aristarchus and the associated Aristarchus Plateau. In the image above you will notice what appears to be a tiny mare close to the limb of the Moon west of the southern part of Oceanus Procellarum. This is the lava-flooded crater Grimaldi.

Mare Orientale, the “Eastern Sea”

South of Grimaldi and straddling the lunar limb is Mare Orientale. It is difficult to see because most of it is on the lunar farside, though libration can sometimes bring its oblique visage into view. The name Orientale, meaning “eastern”, describes its location on the eastward-facing limb of the Moon as seen from Earth, rather than its westward direction as seen from the surface of the Moon.

Mare Humorum, the “Sea of Moisture”

Mare Humorum is located just south of Oceanus Procellarum. It is round and inviting, though no spacecraft has ever landed there.

Mare Nubium, the “Sea of Clouds”

Mare Nubium is east of Mare Humorum. The large crater Bullialdus flanks the western edge of Mare Nubium, and Rupes Recta (the “Straight Wall”) flanks its eastern edge.

Mare Cognitum, the “Sea That Has Become Known”

Mare Cognitum lies between Mare Nubium and Oceanus Procellarum. It was named in 1964 after the Ranger 7 probe took the first U.S. close-up pictures of the Moon’s surface prior to crashing there.

Mare Insularum, the “Sea of Islands”

Mare Insularum is north of Mare Cognitum. Its current name was bestowed upon it in 1976 by lunar geologist Don Wilhelms (1930-). The crater Kepler on its western edge separates Mare Insularum from Oceanus Procellarum. The crater Copernicus is on the northeast side of its western lobe.

Mare Vaporum, the “Sea of Vapors”

Mare Vaporum is the mare closest to the center of the Moon’s nearside. The bright crater Manilius lies towards its northeastern edge and the volcanic crater Hyginus and its associated rille (Rima Hyginus) are immediately to its south.

Mare Imbrium, the “Sea of Rains”

Mare Imbrium was created 3.9 billion years ago when an asteroid some 150 miles across crashed into the Moon. This ancient feature is so large that it forms the right eye of the “Man in the Moon” we see when looking at a full or nearly full moon with our unaided eyes.

Mare Frigoris, the “Sea of Cold”

Mare Frigoris lies north and northeast of Mare Imbrium. The dark crater between them is Plato. It is the mare closest to the north pole of the Moon.

Mare Serenitatis, the “Sea of Serenity”

Now we begin our tour of the eastern hemisphere of the Moon’s nearside. Mare Serenitatis has the distinction of being the landing site of the last human mission to the Moon, Apollo 17, in 1972. It was also the landing site of the Soviet unmanned spacecraft Luna 21 just one month later.

Mare Tranquillitatis, the “Sea of Tranquility”

Mare Tranquillitatis is perhaps the most famous of the lunar maria, as it was there that humans first set foot on the surface of the Moon in 1969. The Apollo 11 landing site is located near its southwest corner.

Mare Nectaris, the “Sea of Nectar”

Mare Nectaris lies south of Mare Tranquillitatis. This small, isolated, and nearly circular mare sports a prominent crater, Theophilus, at its northwest corner.

Mare Fecunditatis, the “Sea of Fertility”

East of Mare Nectaris lies Mare Fecunditatis. Superposed upon Mare Fecunditatis is the striking crater pair Messier and Messier A with two prominent rays evocative of a comet’s tail. Named after the famous French comet hunter Charles Messier (1730-1817), these craters and their associated rays were formed from a grazing impact from the east.

Mare Crisium, the “Sea of Crises”

Mare Crisium is a round and isolated mare that makes it easy to remember why it is called the “Sea of Crises”. The Soviet Luna 24 unmanned sample return mission landed there in 1976. The six ounces of lunar materials it brought back to Earth are the last lunar samples scientists have received.

Mare Anguis, the “Serpent Sea”

Mare Anguis lies just northeast of Mare Crisium and is called the “Serpent Sea” for its serpentine shape rather than the more fanciful name “Sea of Serpents” referred to by some science fiction authors.

Mare Undarum, the “Sea of Waves”

Mare Undarum lies southeast of Mare Crisium. Its uneven texture and lack of uniform smoothness appears to justify its name as “the sea of waves”.

Mare Spumans, the “Foaming Sea”

Mare Spumans lies south of Mare Undarum and east of Mare Fecunditatis. The bright crater Petit on the western side of this tiny mare evinces a bit of foam on “the foaming sea”.

Mare Australe, the “Southern Sea”

Mare Australe hugs the southeastern limb of the lunar nearside. Though obliquely viewed from Earth and wrapping around to the lunar farside, favorable libration makes it visible in its entirety on occasion.

Mare Smythii, “Smyth’s Sea”

Mare Smythii on the eastern limb of the Moon is one of two lunar maria named after people. The lucky honoree is English hydrographer and astronomer William Henry Smyth (1788-1865). The lunar equator passes through Mare Smythii.

Mare Marginis, the “Sea of the Edge”

Mare Marginis lies east of Mare Crisium, right along the lunar limb. The crater Goddard on the northeast side of Mare Marginis exhibits bright deposits on its northeastern side. This crater and its associated deposits can only be seen from Earth during favorable librations.

Mare Humboldtianum, the “Sea of Alexander von Humboldt”

Mare Humboldtianum lies along the northeastern limb of the Moon and is the other lunar mare named after a person. The German astronomer Johann Heinrich von Mädler (1794-1874) named this feature after German geographer and explorer Alexander von Humboldt (1769-1859).

This completes our tour of the 21 maria on the nearside of the Moon.

References

António Cidadão’s Home-Page of Lunar and Planetary Observation and CCD Imaging, Moon-“Light” Atlas.  Retrieved 22 April 2020.
http://www.astrosurf.com/cidadao/moonlight_mare_oceanus.htm

Ewen A. Whitaker, Mapping and Naming the Moon: A History of Lunar Cartography and Nomenclature (Cambridge University Press, 2003).

Bringing Home Pieces of the Moon

The astronauts on Apollo 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, and 17 between 1969 and 1972 brought back a total of 840 lbs of moon rocks and soil.  Each successive Apollo mission brought back a larger amount of lunar material.

The Soviets brought back a total of 0.7 lbs of lunar soil through their robotic sample return missions Luna 16 (1970), Luna 20 (1972), and Luna 24 (1976).

So, excluding lunar meteorites that have befallen the Earth, a total of 840.7 lbs of lunar material has been delivered to research laboratories here on Earth.

It has been over 40 years since we have brought anything back from the lunar surface.  There are many interesting areas yet to be explored.  Why not send a series of robotic geologists to the Moon in advance of human missions? The success of the Spirit, Opportunity, and Curiosity rovers on Mars show us the exciting work that can be done at a fraction of the cost of human missions.  One enhancement would be the ability of the lunar robotic rovers to collect moon rocks and soil and return them to the mother ship for delivery to Earth.

But our 40+ year wait for additional lunar material may soon be over!

China plans to launch the Chang’e 5 lunar lander in November of this year.  It is expected to land in the Oceanus Procellarum (“Ocean of Storms”) region of the Moon, scoop up at least 4.4 lbs of lunar soil and rock—including some at least six feet below the surface!  The lunar haul will be launched into lunar orbit, where it will rendezvous with the sample return module that will bring it back to Earth.  After a high-speed entry into Earth’s atmosphere, the sample return module will rapidly decelerate, then gently parachute down to the Earth’s surface, presumably somewhere in China.

Chang’e 5 promises to be one of the most exciting and important space missions this year.  Stay tuned!