Lunar Taruntius Crater System Lost Three Satellites in 1973

Summary: The lunar Taruntius Crater system lost three satellites in 1973 when C, D and M received official IAU-approved names as craters.

Detail of Lunar Aeronautical Chart (LAC) 61, between 10 degrees north latitude and 40 degrees east longitude, shows Cameron, Lawrence, Watts and Taruntius Crater system on northwestern Mare Fecunditatis; scale 1:1,000,000; Mercator Projection: United States Air Force (USAF) Aeronautical Chart and Information Center (ACIC) via USGS/Gazetter of Planetary Nomenclature

The lunar Taruntius Crater system lost three satellites in 1973 when the International Astronomical Union (IAU) approved official names of Cameron, Watts and Lawrence for former Taruntius satellites C, D and M.

The upgrade from secondary to primary craters reduced Taruntius Crater’s parentage from 22 to 19. The Taruntius system’s remaining associated secondary craters are identified as A, B, E, F, G, H, K, L, N, O, P, R, S, T, U, V, W, X and Z.

The Taruntius Crater system occupies the maria-rich first, or northeastern, quadrant of the moon’s near side. The primary and second craters are found on the northwestern border of Mare Fecunditatis (Sea of Fecundity). Two other dark, basaltic plains, Mare Crisium (Sea of Crises) and Mare Tranquillitatis (Sea of Tranquility), are sited in the Taruntius neighborhood.

Cameron Crater distinctively breaks Taruntius Crater’s northwestern rim. The circular, cup-shaped crater is centered at 6.19 degrees north latitude and 45.93 degrees east longitude, according to the International Astronomical Union’s (IAU) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Its northernmost and southernmost latitudes extend to 6.37 degrees north and 6.01 degrees north, respectively. Its easternmost and westernmost longitudes reach 46.11 degrees east and 45.75 degrees east, respectively. Cameron Crater’s diameter spans 10.91 kilometers.

Prior to IAU approval of Cameron as its official name in 1973, the small impact crater was designated as Taruntius C. Cameron’s namesake was American astronomer Robert Curry Cameron (1925-December 1972). Cameron’s astronomy resume included the United States Naval Observatory (USNO) in Washington, D.C., and also at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. On April 20, 1950, Cameron discovered asteroid 1950 HH, which he named 1575 Winifred in honor of his wife, American astronomer Winifred Sawtell Cameron (Dec. 3, 1918-March 29, 2016).

Watts lies to the north of Cameron and Taruntius, on the extreme northern edge of Mare Fecunditatis. The small lunar impact crater is centered at 8.84 degrees north latitude, 46.31 degrees east longitude. Watts obtains northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 9.1 degrees north and 8.59 degrees north, respectively. Easternmost and westernmost longitudes are registered at 46.57 degrees east and 46.05 degrees east, respectively. Its diameter measures 15.55 kilometers.

In 1973, the IAU approved Watts as the official name for previously-designated Taruntius satellite D. The crater’s name honors American astronomer Chester Burleigh Watts (Oct. 27, 1889-July 17, 1971). Watts devoted most of his career to the United States Naval Observatory’s 6-inch Transit Circle Division.

Lawrence Crater lies southwest of Watts and northwest of Cameron and Taruntius. Lawrence is centered at 7.35 degrees north latitude, 43.3 degrees east longitude. Northernmost and southernmost latitude extend to 7.75 degrees north and 6.96 degrees north, respectively. Easternmost and westernmost longitudes reach to 43.7 degrees east and 42.9 degrees east, respectively. Its diameter spans 24.02 kilometers.

In 1973, the IAU officially changed the flooded lunar impact crater’s name from Taruntius satellite M to Lawrence. The crater honors two namesakes. American nuclear scientist Ernest Orlando Lawrence (Aug. 8, 1901-Aug. 27, 1958) was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in November 1939 for his invention, the cyclotron, and for results, especially concerning artificial radioactive elements, obtained with his particle accelerator. United States Air Force (USAF) test pilot Robert Henry Lawrence Jr. (Oct. 2, 1935-Dec. 8, 1967) became his country’s first African-American astronaut with his acceptance in June 1967 into the Manned Orbital Laboratory (MOL), the Air Force’s human spaceflight program.

The takeaway for the lunar Taruntius Crater system’s loss of three satellites in 1973 is that the International Astronomical Union (IAU) promoted Taruntius C, D and M from secondary to primary craters with respective official names of Cameron, Watts and Lawrence.

Apollo 10 mission 70mm, black-and-white photograph shows Cameron Crater, then designated as Taruntius C, breaking rim of Taruntius Crater; 70mm Hasselblad, film magazine 31 (R); NASA ID AS10-31-4570: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), No known copyright restrictions, via U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)

Acknowledgment

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

Image credits:

Detail of Lunar Aeronautical Chart (LAC) 61, between 10 degrees north latitude and 40 degrees east longitude, shows Cameron, Lawrence, Watts and Taruntius Crater system on northwestern Mare Fecunditatis; scale 1:1,000,000; Mercator Projection: United States Air Force (USAF) Aeronautical Chart and Information Center (ACIC) via USGS/Gazetter of Planetary Nomenclature @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/images/Lunar/lac_61_wac.pdf

Apollo 10 mission 70mm, black-and-white photograph shows Cameron Crater, then designated as Taruntius C, breaking rim of Taruntius Crater; 70mm Hasselblad, film magazine 31 (R); NASA ID AS10-31-4570: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), No known copyright restrictions, via U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) @ https://nara.getarchive.net/media/as10-31-4570-apollo-10-apollo-10-mission-image-crater-taruntius-ca8633

For further information:

Consolmagno, Guy; and Dan M. Davis. Turn Left at Orion. Fourth edition. Cambridge UK; New York NY: Cambridge University Press, 2011.

International Astronomical Union. “Cameron.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/986

International Astronomical Union. “Lawrence.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/3308

International Astronomical Union. “Mare Crisium.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/3671

International Astronomical Union. “Mare Fecunditatis.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/3673

International Astronomical Union. “Mare Tranquillitatis.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/3691

International Astronomical Union. “Taruntius.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/5878

International Astronomical Union. “Watts.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/6498

International Astronomical Union. “Zähringer.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/6772

Levy, David H. Skywatching. Revised and updated. San Francisco CA: Fog City Press, 1994.

Marriner, Derdriu. “Lunar Taruntius Crater System Borders Northwestern Mare Fecunditatis.” Earth and Space News. Wednesday, April 13, 2011.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2011/04/lunar-taruntius-crater-system-borders.html

Moore, Patrick, Sir. Philip’s Atlas of the Universe. Revised edition. London UK: Philip’s, 2005.

U.S. Geological Survey. Color-Coded Topography and Shaded Relief Map of the Lunar Near Side and Far Side Hemispheres. U.S. Geological Survey Geologic Investigations Series I-2769. Page last modified Nov. 30, 2016. Flagstaff AZ: U.S. Geological Survey Astrogeology Science Center, 2003.
Available via USGS Publications Warehouse @ https://pubs.usgs.gov/imap/i2769/