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Encke (crater)

Coordinates: 4°36′N 36°36′W / 4.6°N 36.6°W / 4.6; -36.6
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Encke
Coordinates4°36′N 36°36′W / 4.6°N 36.6°W / 4.6; -36.6
Diameter28 km
Depth0.8 km
Colongitude37° at sunrise
EponymJohann F. Encke
The crater area in a Selenochromatic Image (Si)
Oblique view from Apollo 12

Encke is a lunar impact crater that is located on the western edge of the Mare Insularum, to the south-southeast of the crater Kepler. The small crater Kunowsky lies to the east-southeast on the mare.

The crater is named after German mathematician and astronomer Johann Franz Encke.[1]

The rim of Encke is low and somewhat polygonal in shape. The tiny craterlet Encke N lies across the western rim. The floor is somewhat uneven, and is covered in ray material from the nearby Kepler. The high albedo of this ejecta makes Encke a bright feature when the Sun is at a high elevation over the lunar surface.

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 Encke.

Encke Latitude Longitude Diameter
B 2.4° N 36.8° W 12 km
C 0.7° N 36.4° W 9 km
E 0.3° N 40.1° W 9 km
G 4.8° N 38.8° W 7 km
H 4.0° N 37.3° W 4 km
J 5.2° N 39.5° W 5 km
K 1.4° N 37.2° W 4 km
M 4.5° N 35.1° W 3 km
N 4.6° N 37.1° W 4 km
T 3.4° N 38.0° W 91 km
X 0.9° N 40.3° W 3 km
Y 5.9° N 36.4° W 3 km
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References

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  1. ^ "Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature | Encke". usgs.gov. International Astronomical Union. Retrieved August 29, 2017.