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Atlas (crater)

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Atlas is a prominent lunar impact crater that is located in the northeast part of the Moon, to the southeast of Mare Frigoris. T. W. Webb described it as "a superb amphitheatre" with "its ring rich in terraces and towers".[3] Just to the west is the slightly smaller but still prominent crater Hercules, and the pair make a notable sight for a telescopic observer.[4] Northeast of Atlas is the large crater Endymion.[5]: 27 

Atlas
Mosaic of Lunar Orbiter 4 images
Coordinates46°42′N 44°24′E / 46.7°N 44.4°E / 46.7; 44.4
Diameter88.12 km (54.76 mi)[1]
Depth2.0 km
Colongitude316° at sunrise
FormationUpper Imbrian[2]
EponymAtlas

This crater is named after the mythological Greek Titan, Atlas. Its designation was formally adopted by the IAU in 1935.[1] The name was included in the lunar nomenclature of the Italian selenographer Giovanni Riccioli in 1651.[6]

Description

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On the lunar geologic timescale, Atlas is a crater of Upper (Late) Imbrian age.[2] The inner wall of Atlas is multiply terraced[4] and the edge slumped, forming a sharp-edged lip.[7] Its southwest quadrangle is characterised by an extremely high rockfall density by lunar standards.[8]: 2, 3  This is a floor-fractured crater[2][9] with a rough and hilly interior that has a lighter albedo than the surroundings. Floor-fractures are usually created as a result of volcanic modifications.

There are two dark patches along the inner edge of the walls;[7] one along the north edge and another besides the southeast edges.[10] These are pyroclastic deposits likely made by explosive volcanic eruptions. Spectra of these deposits show "feldspar-bearing mafic mineral assemblages dominated by orthopyroxene".[11] A lighter hued ray from the 440 km distant crater Thales passes between these dark areas.[4] The infrared spectrum of pure crystalline plagioclase has been identified on the northeast floor, and the north, northeast and southeast walls.[12]

A system of slender clefts named the Rimae Atlas crosses the crater floor,[4] and were created by volcanism. Along the north and northeastern inner sides are a handful of dark-halo craters, most likely due to eruptions. Around the midpoint is a complex of low central hills arranged in a circular formation. These peaks differ significantly from typical lunar crust, showing an enrichment in mafic compounds. This likely results from the crater floor evolution due to magmatic influences.[13] The spectra of the central peak fits an anorthositic gabbro mineralogy, which originated from a depth of 8.7 to 13.8 km.[14]

Exploration

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Ejecta field around Hakuto-R Mission 1 impact site
Atlas (center right) and Hercules (center left) Lunar craters
Oblique view of Atlas and Hercules from Apollo 16

The Atlas crater was the primary landing site of the Hakuto-R Mission 1 by ispace, that launched on December 11, 2022.[15] separating from the rocket 47 minutes later at a distance around 970 kilometres (600 mi) away from Earth.[16][verification needed] If it had been successful, this mission would have been the first private landing on the lunar surface,[17] and would have been the first Japanese probe to land on the Moon.

Communication with Hakuto-R Mission 1 was lost during the final moments of descent to the lunar surface at 16:40 UTC (00:40 JST) on 25 April 2023.[16][verification needed] The iSpace team confirmed that the $90 million dollar spacecraft had most likely crashed during its landing on the Moon. Analysis determined that the lander plummeted uncontrollably when the propellant was exhausted. This happened because the onboard computer wrongly assumed the radar altimeter was faulty, and ignoring its data, misjudged the actual altitude of the spacecraft and kept hovering 5 kilometers above the surface of the Moon.[16][18][19]

Satellite craters

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By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Atlas.

Atlas[5]: 292  Latitude Longitude Diameter
A 45.3° N 49.6° E 22 km
D 50.4° N 49.6° E 25 km
E 48.6° N 42.5° E 58 km
G 50.7° N 46.5° E 23 km
L 51.3° N 48.6° E 6 km
P 49.6° N 52.7° E 27 km
W 44.4° N 44.2° E 4 km
X 45.1° N 45.0° E 5 km

References

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  1. 1 2 "Atlas". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. 1 2 3 Wilhelms, Don E.; McCauley, John F.; Trask, Newell J. (1987). The geologic history of the Moon. USGS Professional Paper 1348. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office. Table 11.2.
  3. ↑ Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. pp. 108, 154–159. Reprint: ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3
  4. 1 2 3 4 Grego, Peter (2005). The Moon and How to Observe It. Astronomers' Observing Guides Series. London: Springer-Verlag. p. 147. ISBN 1-85233-748-6.
  5. 1 2 Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
  6. ↑ Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. pp. 60–61, 211. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
  7. 1 2 Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-304-35469-6.
  8. ↑ Bickel, Valentin Tertius; et al. (8 June 2020). "Impacts drive lunar rockfalls over billions of years". Nature Communications. 11: 1–7. doi:10.1038/s41467-020-16653-3. eISSN 2041-1723. PMC 7280507.
  9. ↑ Jozwiak, Lauren M.; et al. (November 2012). "Lunar floor-fractured craters: Classification, distribution, origin and implications for magmatism and shallow crustal structure". Journal of Geophysical Research. 117 (E11) E11005. Bibcode:2012JGRE..11711005J. doi:10.1029/2012JE004134.
  10. ↑ Misra, D.; et al. (March 2024). Comparative study between local pyroclastic deposits at Atlas and Alphonsus crater. 55th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, held 11-15 March, 2024 at The Woodlands, Texas/Virtual. LPI Contribution No. 3040. id. 2134. Bibcode:2024LPICo3040.2134M.
  11. ↑ Gaddis, L.; et al. (March 2010). Lunar Pyroclastic Volcanism at Atlas Crater as Viewed by LROC. 41st Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, held March 1-5, 2010 in The Woodlands, Texas. LPI Contribution No. 1533. p. 2059. Bibcode:2010LPI....41.2059G.
  12. ↑ Donaldson Hanna, K. L.; et al. (July 2014). "Global assessment of pure crystalline plagioclase across the Moon and implications for the evolution of the primary crust". Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. 119 (7): 1516–1545. Bibcode:2014JGRE..119.1516D. doi:10.1002/2013JE004476.
  13. ↑ Liu, Niannian; et al. (15 May 2026). "The 3D subsurface structures of the Atlas impact crater revealed by GRAIL gravity data". Icarus. 450 116976. doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2026.116976.
  14. ↑ Cahill, J. T. S.; et al. (September 2009). "Compositional variations of the lunar crust: Results from radiative transfer modeling of central peak spectra". Journal of Geophysical Research. 114 (E9) E09001. Bibcode:2009JGRE..114.9001C. doi:10.1029/2008JE003282.
  15. ↑ Swift, Rocky (13 April 2023). "Japan's ispace launches commercial moon lander, in potential world first". Reuters. Retrieved 2026-05-25.
  16. 1 2 3 "Status Update on ispace Hakuto-R Mission 1 Lunar Lander". ispace. Retrieved 2023-04-26.
  17. ↑ Crane, Leah (28 November 2022). "Japanese firm ispace is racing to put first private lander on the moon". New Scientist. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  18. ↑ "Japan Spacecraft Believed to Have Crashed on Moon During Landing". Bloomberg.com. 25 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
  19. ↑ 日本放送協会. "月面着陸 開発の民間企業が会見 "途中で燃料がつきて落下か"". NHKニュース. Archived from the original on April 26, 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-27.
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