Diophantus (crater)

Diophantus (crater)

The craters Delisle (above) and Diophantus (below) from Apollo 15. NASA photo.
Coordinates	27°36′N 34°18′W / 27.6°N 34.3°W / 27.6; -34.3Coordinates: 27°36′N 34°18′W / 27.6°N 34.3°W / 27.6; -34.3
Diameter	19 km
Depth	3.0 km
Colongitude	34° at sunrise
Eponym	Diophantus

Diophantus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southwestern part of the Mare Imbrium. It forms a pair with the larger crater Delisle to the north. Diophantus has a wide inner wall and a low central rise. To the north of Diophantus is the sinuous rille designated Rima Diophantus, named after the crater. There is a tiny craterlet near the exterior of the southwest wall.

Rima Diophantus

This cleft follows a generally east–west path across the Mare Imbrium. It is centered at selenographic coordinates 31.0° N, 32.0° W, and has a maximum diameter of 150 km. Several tiny craters near this rille have been assigned names by the IAU. These are listed in the table below.

Crater	Coordinates	Diameter	Name source
Isabel	28°12′N 34°06′W / 28.2°N 34.1°W / 28.2; -34.1	1 km	Spanish feminine name
Louise	28°30′N 34°12′W / 28.5°N 34.2°W / 28.5; -34.2	0.8 km	French feminine name
Samir	28°30′N 34°18′W / 28.5°N 34.3°W / 28.5; -34.3	2 km	Arabic masculine name
Walter1	28°00′N 33°48′W / 28.0°N 33.8°W / 28.0; -33.8	1 km	German masculine name

1	Not to be confused with the large crater Walther in the southern hemisphere which is misidentified as 'Walter' in some publications

Satellite craters

By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater mid-point that is closest to Diophantus.

Diophantus	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
B	29.1° N	32.5° W	6 km
C	27.3° N	34.7° W	5 km
D	26.9° N	36.3° W	4 km

The following craters have been renamed by the IAU.

• Diophantus A — See Artsimovich.

References

• Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A., (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097. 
• Blue, Jennifer (July 25, 2007). "Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature". USGS. http://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/. Retrieved 2007-08-05. 
• Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-81528-2. 
• Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN 0-936389-27-3. 
• McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). "Lunar Nomenclature". Jonathan's Space Report. http://host.planet4589.org/astro/lunar/. Retrieved 2007-10-24. 
• Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (1971). "Report on Lunar Nomenclature by the Working Group of Commission 17 of the IAU". Space Science Reviews 12 (2): 136–186. Bibcode 1971SSRv...12..136M. doi:10.1007/BF00171763.  edit
• Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. ISBN 0-304-35469-4. 
• Price, Fred W. (1988). The Moon Observer's Handbook. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-33500-0. 
• Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 0-913135-17-8. 
• Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revision ed.). Dover. ISBN 0-486-20917-2. 
• Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-62248-4. 
• Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 1-85233-193-3. 

External links

• LTO-39B3 Diophantus — L&PI topographic map of crater and vicinity.
• "Featured Image: Dark Streaks in Diophantus Crater". Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. NASA. February 23, 2011. http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/multimedia/lroimages/lroc-20110223-dark.html. Retrieved 2011-03-18.