Crater Proclus: Hexagonal and more ....

[John]

Lovely phase of the moon this evening.

One of the stand out features for me just now is the crater Proclus between the Mare Crisium and the Palus Somni (Marsh of Sleep - love that name !).

The crater is one of the brightest parts of the moon but the illumination tonight shows some shadow within the crater and it's shape, depth and some inner wall structure.

The crater shows a hexagonal shape quite clearly under this light.

Lots more to see so I'm going back out there

This is a Lunar Orbiter image from overhead:

Edited April 18, 2021 by John

[John]

Another little gem, the crater Plinius, on the boundary between the Mare Tranquillitatis and Mare Serenitatis. Not the crater so much, though that is nice, but the 3 very thin rilles that run across the boundary between the Mare on the Serenity side of Plinius and across towards Dawes.

I don't think I've seen these before

Edited April 18, 2021 by John

[Littleguy80]

Thanks for the heads up, John. Had the dob out cooling. Thin cloud had arrived by the time I got out but still had a look at the Moon. The hexagonal shape of Proculus was quite pronounced as you say. Very neat. With the views brightening and dimming due to cloud, I was only able to pick out one of the rilles near Plinius. Had a quick peek at the Apollo 11 landing site. Still can’t quite see the flag  Short session but good enough to give me my astronomy fix for the night! Hope you enjoyed the rest of your session. 

Edited April 18, 2021 by Littleguy80