Summary: Erlanger Crater honors American physiologist Joseph Erlanger, joint 1944 Nobel Laureate with Herbert Gasser for their nerve fiber discoveries.
 |
| Image of Erlanger Crater, obtained by LROC Narrow Angle Camera, reveals the near side north polar crater’s permanently shadowed interior floor and sunlight-illuminated rim; NASA / GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) / Arizona State University: Public Domain, via NASA |
Erlanger Crater honors American physiologist Joseph Erlanger, who was the joint recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1944 for nerve fiber discoveries.
Erlanger is a lunar impact crater that lies close to the north pole in the near side’s northeastern quadrant. Planetary geologist Brett Denevi identifies Erlanger as numbering among lunar craters with floors completely, muchly or somewhat permanently shadowed. Shadowed craters are known as craters of eternal darkness. The sun’s position near the horizon accounts for the lack of illumination.
Erlanger is centered at 86.99 degrees north latitude, 28.62 degrees east longitude, according to the International Astronomical Union’s (IAU) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. The north polar crater obtains northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 87.17 degrees north and 86.81 degrees north, respectively. Its easternmost and westernmost longitudes occur at 32.05 degrees east and 25.18 degrees east, respectively. Erlanger Crater has a diameter of 10.94 kilometers.
Peary is Erlanger’s nearest named northern neighbor. Peary’s location places the worn crater near the near side’s eastern limb.
Peary is centered at 88.63 degrees north latitude, 24.4 degrees east longitude. Its northernmost and southernmost latitudes stretch from 89.92 degrees north and 87.33 degrees north, respectively. Its easternmost and westernmost longitudes reach 95.2 degrees east and minus 46.4 degrees west longitude, respectively. Peary Crater’s diameter measures 78.75 kilometers.
Fibiger is one of Erlanger’s two nearest named southern neighbors. Fibiger lies to the southeast of Erlanger.
Fibiger is centered at 86.14 degrees north latitude, 37.13 degrees east longitude. It finds northernmost and southernmost latitudes at 86.46 degrees north and 85.82 degrees north, respectively. Fibiger marks easternmost and
westernmost longitudes at 41.72 degrees east and 32.73 degrees east, respectively. Fibiger has a diameter of 21.1 kilometers.
Byrd is one of Erlanger’s two nearest named southern neighbors. Byrd lies to the southwest of Erlanger.
Byrd is centered at 85.43 degrees north latitude, 10.07 degrees east longitude. The irregular lunar crater posts northernmost and southernmost latitudes of 87.01 degrees north and 83.85 degrees north, respectively. Its easternmost and westernmost longitudes extend from 28.85 degrees east to minus 7.42 degrees west, respectively. Byrd’s diameter spans 97.49 kilometers.
Erlanger Crater honors American physiologist Joseph Erlanger (Jan. 5, 1874-Dec. 5, 1965). The International Astronomical Union (IAU) approved Erlanger as the crater’s official name on Jan. 22, 2009.
 |
| Image of Erlanger Crater obtained by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) reveals "eternal darkness near the North Pole" with illumination of a "small portion of the rim" and much of the floor "in permanent shadow due to its location near the north pole"; NASA ID PIA12899; image addition date 2009-08-24; image credit NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University: May be used for any purpose without prior permission, via NASA JPL Photojournal |
Erlanger Crater honors American physiologist Joseph Erlanger (Jan. 5, 1874-Dec. 5, 1965). The International Astronomical Union (IAU) approved Erlanger as the crater’s official name on Jan. 22, 2009.
Erlanger received his medical degree in 1899 from Johns Hopkins Medical School in Baltimore, Maryland. He was admitted into the third class of the newly organized institution, according to American physiologist and otolaryngologist Hallowell Davis (Aug. 31, 1896-Aug. 22, 1992) in the 1970 issue of the National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs. Erlanger graduated second in his medical class.
After graduation, Erlanger favored teaching and research over a medical practice. He held a one-year internship under Sir William Osler (July 12, 1849-Dec. 29, 1919). The Canadian physician numbered among the “Big Four” founding physicians at the May 7, 1889, opening of the Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Erlanger taught and researched physiology (Ancient Greek: φύσις, physis, “nature, origin” and -λογία, -logia, “study of”), the study of a living system’s functions and mechanisms, for six years at Johns Hopkins Medical School. His research yielded publications on such topics as canine metabolism; mammal heart-block, also known as abnormal heart rhythm; human blood pressure and the physiology of the circulatory system.
Erlanger accepted the first chair of physiology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison in 1906. He remained there for four years. One of his students was Herbert Spencer Gasser (July 5, 1888-May 11, 1963).
In 1910, Erlanger relocated to St. Louis, Missouri, to pioneer Washington University School of Medicine’s Physiology Department. In 1916, his former student, Herbert Gasser, who had received his medical degree from Johns Hopkins University in 1915, joined Erlanger in Washington University’s Physiology Department.
In the 1920s, Erlanger and Gasser researched nerve fibers. Differentiating between to differently thickened nerve fibers, they determined that faster signal conveyance occurs in the thicker of the two fiber types.
The Nobel Assembly at the Karolinska Institute jointly awarded the 1944 Nobel Prize in Physiology of Medicine to Erlanger and Gasser. The Nobel Prize webpage notes the prize motivation as recognition of “. . . their discoveries
relating to the highly differentiated functions of single nerve fibres.”
The takeaways for Erlanger Crater, which honors American physiologist Joseph Erlanger, are that the lunar impact crater occupies the near side’s north polar region; that Erlanger Crater’s polar region placement, where the sun hovers near the horizon, keeps its interior floor in permanent shadow; that the crater’s namesake and his research partner, Herbert Gasser, discerned the connection between nerve fiber diameter and signal conduction velocity; and that Karolinska Institute’s Nobel Assembly jointed awarded the 1944 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine to Erlanger and Gasser for their nerve fiber discoveries.
 |
| Detail of Lunar Astronautical Chart (LAC) 1 shows Erlanger Crater as a near side north polar region crater, with nearest named neighbors Byrd and Fibiger to the southwest and southeast, respectively, and Peary to the north; courtesy NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) / GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) / ASU (Arizona State University): U.S. Geological Survey, Public Domain, via USGS Astrogeology Science Center / Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature |
Acknowledgment
My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.
Image credits:
Image credits:
Image of Erlanger Crater, obtained by LROC Narrow Angle Camera, reveals the near side north polar crater’s permanently shadowed interior floor and sunlight-illuminated rim; NASA / GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) / Arizona State University: Public Domain, via NASA @ https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/Mini-RF/multimedia/erlanger_crater.html
Image of Erlanger Crater obtained by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) reveals "eternal darkness near the North Pole" with illumination of a "small portion of the rim" and much of the floor "in permanent shadow due to its location near the north pole"; NASA ID PIA12899; image addition date 2009-08-24; image credit NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University: May be used for any purpose without prior permission, via NASA JPL Photojournal @ https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA12899;
Generally not subject to copyright in the United States; may use this material for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages; general permission extends to personal Web pages, via NASA Image and Video Library @ https://images.nasa.gov/details/PIA12899
Generally not subject to copyright in the United States; may use this material for educational or informational purposes, including photo collections, textbooks, public exhibits, computer graphical simulations and Internet Web pages; general permission extends to personal Web pages, via NASA Image and Video Library @ https://images.nasa.gov/details/PIA12899
Detail of Lunar Astronautical Chart (LAC) 1 shows Erlanger Crater as a near side north polar region crater, with nearest named neighbors Byrd and Fibiger to the southwest and southeast, respectively, and Peary to the north; courtesy NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) / GSFC (Goddard Space Flight Center) / ASU (Arizona State University): U.S. Geological Survey, Public Domain, via USGS Astrogeology Science Center / Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/images/Lunar/lac_1_wac.pdf
For further information:
For further information:
Andersson, Leif E.; and Ewen A. Whitaker. NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA Reference Publication 1097. Washington DC: NASA National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scientific and Technical Information Branch, October 1982.
Available via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reports Server) @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19830003761.pdf
Available via NASA NTRS (NASA Technical Reports Server) @ https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19830003761.pdf
Chase, Merrill W.; and Carlton C. Hunt. “Herbert Spencer Gasser 1888-1963.” National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs, vol. 67 (1995): 147-177. Washington DC: National Academy of Sciences, 1970.
Available @ http://www.nasonline.org/publications/biographical-memoirs/memoir-pdfs/gasser-herbert.pdf
Available @ http://www.nasonline.org/publications/biographical-memoirs/memoir-pdfs/gasser-herbert.pdf
Consolmagno, Guy; and Dan M. Davis. Turn Left at Orion. Fourth edition. Cambridge UK; New York NY: Cambridge University Press, 2011.
Corbett, Ian F., ed. XXVIIth General Assembly Transactions of the IAU Vol. XVII B Proceedings of the 27th General Assembly Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 3-14, 2009. Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press, May 19, 2010.
Available @ https://www.iau.org/publications/iau/transactions_b/
Available @ https://www.iau.org/publications/iau/transactions_b/
Davis, Hallowell. “Joseph Erlanger 1874-1965.” National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs, vol. 41 (1970): 111-139. Washington DC: National Academy of Sciences, 1970.
Available via NAS (National Academy of Sciences) Online @ http://www.nasonline.org/publications/biographical-memoirs/memoir-pdfs/erlanger-joseph.pdf
Available via NAS (National Academy of Sciences) Online @ http://www.nasonline.org/publications/biographical-memoirs/memoir-pdfs/erlanger-joseph.pdf
Denevi, Brett. “Eternal Darkness Near the North Pole.” LROC (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera) > posts. Aug. 24, 2009.
Available @ http://lroc.sese.asu.edu/posts/96
Available @ http://lroc.sese.asu.edu/posts/96
Grego, Peter. The Moon and How to Observe It. Astronomers’ Observing Guides. London UK: Springer-Verlag, 2005.
International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Byrd.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > The Moon. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/941
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/941
International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Erlanger.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > The Moon. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/14525
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/14525
International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Fibiger.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > The Moon. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/14526
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/14526
International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Peary.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > The Moon. Last updated Oct. 18, 2010.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/4627
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/4627
Keeter, Bill, ed. “Image of the Crater Erlanger.” NASA > Missions > Current Missions > Mini-RF > Multimedia. Last updated Aug. 20, 2009.
Available @ https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/Mini-RF/multimedia/erlanger_crater.html
Available @ https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/Mini-RF/multimedia/erlanger_crater.html
Levy, David H. Skywatching. Revised and updated. San Francisco CA: Fog City Press, 1994.
The Moon Wiki. “Byrd.” The Moon > Lunar Features Alphabetically > B Nomenclature.
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Byrd
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Byrd
The Moon Wiki. “Erlanger.” The Moon > Lunar Features Alphabetically > E Nomenclature.
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Erlanger
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Erlanger
The Moon Wiki. “Fibiger.” The Moon > Lunar Features Alphabetically > F Nomenclature.
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Fibiger
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Fibiger
The Moon Wiki. “IAU Directions.” The Moon.
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/IAU_directions
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/IAU_directions
The Moon Wiki. “Peary.” The Moon > Lunar Features Alphabetically > P Nomenclature.
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Peary
Available @ https://the-moon.us/wiki/Peary
Moore, Patrick, Sir. Philip’s Atlas of the Universe. Revised edition. London UK: Philip’s, 2005.
The Nobel Prize. “Joseph Erlanger: Biographical.” The Nobel Prize > Prizes > Medicine > 1944.
Available @ https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1944/erlanger/facts/
Available @ https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1944/erlanger/facts/
The Nobel Prize. “Joseph Erlanger: Facts.” The Nobel Prize > Prizes > Medicine > 1944.
Available @ https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1944/erlanger/facts/
Available @ https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1944/erlanger/facts/
Plait, Phil. “Lunar Boreal Halo.” Discover > The Sciences > Bad Astronomy. Aug. 27, 2009.
Available @ https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/lunar-boreal-halo
Available @ https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/lunar-boreal-halo
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.