Hale (lunar crater)

This article is about the crater on the Moon. For the Martian crater, see Hale (Martian crater).

Hale

Lunar Orbiter 4 image
Coordinates	74.2°S 90.8°E / -74.2; 90.8
Diameter	83 km
Depth	Unknown
Colongitude	273° at sunrise
Eponym	George E. Hale William Hale

Drawing of the lunar crater Hale

Oblique view of Hale from Apollo 15, facing south

Hale is a relatively young lunar impact crater that is located on the southern limb of the Moon. Over half the crater lies on the far side of the Moon, and from the Earth this formation is viewed from the side. Thus the crater must be viewed from orbit in order to discern much detail. The nearest crater of note is Wexler to the north. To the east on the far side is the huge walled plain Schrödinger, and to the southwest is the crater Demonax.

The rim of Hale is well-defined, with little wear from later impacts, but has a somewhat irregular, notched perimeter. The inner surface is multiply terraced with some indications of slumping. The inner floor is flat with only a few tiny craterlets to mark the surface. Near the midpoint of the interior is a complex central peak formation, with an additional low rise just to the north.

Satellite craters

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

Hale	Latitude	Longitude	Diameter
Q	76.5° S	83.1° E	24 km

References

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• 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. S2CID 122125855.
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• Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes (6th revised ed.). Dover. ISBN 978-0-486-20917-3.
• Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-62248-6.
• Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 978-1-85233-193-1.