Near Side Crater J. Herschel Parents Five Satellites Within Its Borders

Summary: Near side crater J. Herschel parents five satellites within its borders as a north polar region crater system on northwestern Mare Frigoris (Sea of Cold).

Detail shows lunar near side J. Herschel Crater system of parent and 10 satellites on northwestern Mare Frigoris; LAC (Lunar Aeronautical Chart) 11: NASA / GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) / ASU (Arizona State University, Public Domain, via U.S. Geological Survey / Gazetter of Planetary Nomenclature

Near side crater J. Herschel parents five satellites within its borders as a north polar region crater system on the northwest quadrant’s crater-rich northwestern edge of Mare Frigoris (Sea of Cold).

J. Herschel Crater’s southeastern rim anchors the northwestern Mare Frigoris. The elongated lunar mare (Latin: sea) primarily occupies the lunar near side’s northeast quadrant but stretches into the northwest quadrant. Mare Frigoris is centered at 57.59 degrees north latitude and minus 0.01 degrees west longitude, according to the International Astronomical Union’s (IAU) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. It encompasses mid- and polar latitudes, with northernmost and southernmost latitudes of 64.38 degrees north and 49.08 degrees north, respectively. The basaltic lava plain’s easternmost and westernmost longitudes stretch from 38.03 degrees east to minus 43.14 degrees west, respectively. Mare Frigoris has a diameter of 1,446.41 kilometers.

English amateur astronomer William Radcliffe Birt (July 15, 1804-Dec. 14, 1881) Birt cited the esteem in which German astronomer and selenographer Johann Heinrich von Mädler (May 29, 1794-March 14, 1874) and his wealthy patron, Prussian banker, astronomer and selenographer Wilhelm Wolff Beer (Jan. 4, 1797-March 27, 1850) held the north polar region bordering Mare Frigoris. They considered “. . . the region between Horrebow, Anaximander, and Fontenelle as an exceedingly rich crater country; the principal part consisting of the region of Herschel II” (page 11), according to Birt’s report for the British Association for the Advancement of Science’s 32nd meeting in October 1862.

J. Herschel Crater lies southeast of Anaximander Crater, which is centered at 66.97 degrees north latitude, minus 51.44 degrees west longitude. Fontenelle Crater is located along northern Mare Frigoris, to the northeast of J. Herschel. Horrebow Crater perches on northwestern Mare Frigoris in an overlay of the southwestern part of its satellite, Horrebow A, which, in turn, is attached to J. Herschel’s southeastern rim.

J. Herschel Crater is centered at 62.31 degrees north latitude, minus 41.86 degrees west longitude. The lunar impact crater registers northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 64.86 degrees north and 59.77 degrees north, respectively. It marks easternmost and westernmost longitudes at minus 36.37 degrees west and minus 47.35 degrees west, respectively. J. Herschel Crater’s diameter measures 154.44 kilometers.

J. Herschel forms a crater system as the parent of 10 satellites. Its satellites all claim easterly placements with respect to their parent.

Five of the system’s 10 satellites are found within their parent’s borders. Four satellites occupy their parent’s interior. Satellites C, D, K and L trace a sideways arch on their parent’s eastern floor. Satellite B is attached to its parent’s southeastern rim.

J. Herschel K claims the most northerly position of its parent’s four internal satellites. K is centered at 62.96 degrees north latitude, minus 39.47 degrees west longitude. It finds northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 63.1 degrees north and 62.82 degrees north, respectively. It posts easternmost and westernmost longitudes of minus 39.17 degrees west and minus 39.78 degrees west, respectively. K has a diameter of 8.38 kilometers.

J. Herschel C lies to the southwest of J. Herschel K. C is centered at 62.39 degrees north latitude, minus 40.15 degrees west longitude. C tethers in its northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 62.61 degrees north and 62.21 degrees north, respectively, and its easternmost and westernmost longitudes at minus 39.71 degrees west and minus 40.56 degrees west, respectively. With a diameter of 12 kilometers, C is the largest of the five internal satellites.

J. Herschel L lies to the south of J. Herschel C. L is centered at 61.01 degrees north latitude, minus 40.22 degrees west longitude. L trims its northernmost and southernmost latitudes to 61.13 degrees north and 60.88 degrees north, respectively, and its easternmost and westernmost longitudes to minus 39.96 degrees west and minus 40.47 degrees west, respectively. L has a diameter of 7.45 kilometers.

J. Herschel D claims the most easterly and the most southerly positions of its parent’s four internal satellites. D is centered at 60.47 degrees south latitude, minus 38.17 degrees west longitude. D finds its northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 60.62 degrees north and 60.31 degrees north, respectively, and its easternmost and westernmost longitudes at minus 37.86 degrees west and minus 38.49 degrees west, respectively. D’s diameter measures 9.41 kilometers.

J. Herschel B nestles on its parent’s southeastern rim, to the southwest of satellite D. B is centered at 60.01 degrees north latitude, minus 39 degrees west longitude. B tethers in its northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 60.13 degrees north and 59.89 degrees north, respectively, and its easternmost and westernmost longitudes at minus 38.75 degrees west and minus 39.24 degrees west, respectively. B has a diameter of 7.42 kilometers.

The takeaways for near side crater J. Herschel’s parentage of five satellites within its borders are that the north polar region crater system on northwestern Mare Frigoris parents a total of 10 satellites, of which five are outliers, that four (C, D, K, L) of the five internal satellites arch along their parent’s eastern floor and that one satellite (B) nestles on its parent’s southeastern rim.

Lunar Orbiter 4 photograph, taken in 1967, shows J. Herschel Crater (upper right), with four floor satellites (K, C, L, D), rim satellite B and piggyback attachments of Horrebow A and Horrebow Crater (C 4-5) attached to southern border, on Mare Frigoris; D. Bowker and K. Hughes, Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon (1971); 1967 Lunar Orbiter IV photograph IV-164-H1 Plate 12: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Public Domain, via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reports Server)

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Detail shows lunar near side J. Herschel Crater system of parent and 10 satellites on northwestern Mare Frigoris; LAC (Lunar Aeronautical Chart) 11: NASA / GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) / ASU (Arizona State University, Public Domain, via U.S. Geological Survey / Gazetter of Planetary Nomenclature @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/images/Lunar/lac_11_wac.pdf

Lunar Orbiter 4 photograph, taken in 1967, shows J. Herschel Crater (upper right), with four floor satellites (K, C, L, D), rim satellite B and piggyback attachments of Horrebow A and Horrebow Crater (C 4-5) attached to southern border, on Mare Frigoris; D. Bowker and K. Hughes, Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas of the Moon (1971); 1967 Lunar Orbiter IV photograph no. IV-164-H1 Plate 12: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Public Domain, via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reports Server) @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19730005152.pdf

For further information:

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