Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Unknown
These are the seas oof the near side of the Moon. I made this photo above to make it easier to locate them. Perhaps the term "mare" (or sea), is a bit strange to someone who have just discovered the Moon.
What are the lunar seas:
Lunar seas are dark basalt surfaces, which were formed by very old volcanic eruptions. These large areas have been dubbed "Maria" (in Latin "mare") by ancient astronomers to have mistaken for the real seas.
These are less luminous than higher heights because of iron-rich composition, and therefore seen by the naked eye appear dark.
The seas cover about 16% of the Moon surface, and are especially visible on the side that is seen on Earth. Other big names for these include "oceanus" or ocean, "lacus" or lake, "palus" or swamp, and "sinus" or golf.
-Mare Frigoris- or Sea of cold- stretches 1.446 km and is located above the Alpes mountains
-Mare Imbrium- or Sea of rains- has a large surface of 1.145 km, and is bordered to the south of Sinus Iridium and Alpes mountains to the north, the mountains Apenninus at east, Mare Insularum and Copernicus crater at south and west of Oceanus Procellarum.
-Mare Serenitatis- Sea of serenity is 674 km and is located east of the Apenninus mountains. Mare Imbrium and Mare Serenitatis are separated by these mountains.
-Mare Tranquillitatis or Sea of rest, is joined to the north with Mare Serenitatis and stretches 873 km
-Mare Crisium -or Sea of depression, is located on the east side of the Moon and is isolated from other mare.It has 555 km.
-Mare Fecundatis-or Sea of fertility, is a continuation of Mare Tranquillitatis on south.
-Mare Vaporum or great vapours, is in south of Apenninus mountains and has a surface quite small, 245 km.
-Mare Insularum or Sea of Islands is near the crater Copernicus in southwest.It is 513 km wide.
-Mare Nectaris or Sea of Nectar is located southwest of Mare Fecunditatis and has a relatively small stretch of 333 km.
-Mare Cognitum or the known sea, it's in the intersection of several seas, and has a quite small area of 376 km.
-Mare Humorum or Sea of Humidity it's located on the west of the Moon, and on it is the famous crater Gassendi.it is 389 km in diameter.
-Mare Nubium or Sea of Clouds it is located in the center-south of the Moon with a surface of 715 km.
-Oceanus Procellarum or sea storms is on the east side of the Moon and is 2.592 km in diameter. On it are Aristarcus with Herodotus and Kepler craters.
- Mare Undarum or "Sea of Waves", located on the east side of the Moon with an area of 273 km
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-Mare Spumans or "Foaming Sea" of 139 km.
-Mare Anguis official name is translated as "Serpent Sea", but could also mean "Dragon Sea". It is located on the east side of the Moon.
-Mare Australe or "Southern Sea", is situated in south-eastern hemisphere of the Moon. It is 603 km in diameter, and overlaps the visible (near) and invisible (far) sides of the Moon from Earth.
- Mare Humboldtianum is located east of Mare Frigoris. It is named after Alexander von Humboldt.
-Mare Ingenii or "Sea of intelligence" is one of the few seas on the far side of the Moon.
- Mare Marginis or "Sea of the Edge", is very on the distant edge of visible Moon with a diameter of 420 km.
-Mare Moscoviense or "Sea of Moscow" is a on the Moscoviense basin. It is one of very few seas on the far side of the Moon.
-Mare Orientale or "Eastern Sea" in Italian, is one of the largest lunar seas of 900 km in diameter, a ring like in a bull's eye target. Is located near the western extreme of the Moon, and this impact basin is difficult to see from Earth.
-Mare Smythii Latin for "Sea of Smyth" is located along the equator on the eastern slopes of the near side. It was named after William Henry Smyth, an English astronomer.
