Landing at Mare Crisum

[astroavani]

Imagine yourself in orbit around the Moon, preparing to land on Mare Crisium a few hours before the long lunar night.
I think that would be the view you would have!
At this exact phase, one or two days after the full moon, the mountains to the east stand out in a stupendous way and you would only have to thank for such a privileged view.
On the waning moon the mountains to the east stand out very sharply giving a true 3D sensation.
Mare Crisium is one of the easiest places to spot on the moon. It is a lunar impact basin, about 555 km in diameter and an area that was flooded due to the impact of a large asteroid about 3.9 billion years ago (Nectarian Period). It is located in the northeast quadrant of the visible side of the Moon and, as it is extensive, it can be easily seen and located, even with the naked eye. The waxing and waning Moon periods are more favorable for viewing, as the low-angle sunlight easily illuminates its details.
Generally, lunar basins are named after Giovanni Riccioli, the 17th-century Italian astronomer who devised the current system of lunar naming, and Mare Crisium, too, is named for him.
Although its floor is broad and visually smooth, the sea material is characterized by irregular ridges, incomplete crater rims, and a rough surface. Its edge is exclusive, due to its solids. It has a slight morphological similarity with areas of probable pyroclastic (volcanic) origin. It is the only one on the visible face of the Moon that is not connected to other seas. An interesting reference is Picard, a beautiful crater located in Mare Crisium, more precisely in the southwest, close to the center of Crisium. There are two craters with almost buried low rims, a little further southwest than Picard, called Yerkes and Lick. Take a closer look at the many mountains scattered to the east that make this place extremely interesting to observe or photograph at high magnifications. I did some serious research on the LAC maps but I was only able to safely identify the 3 mountains that are indicated in the photo.
Mons Usov is a small lunar mountain located in the southeastern part of Mare Crisium, north of the Condorcet crater and northeast of the Agarum Promontory. It is essentially a part of the mountainous rim of the Crisium basin, but like the Alhazen alpha and beta mounts it appears somewhat isolated because of the flooding of the basin by basalt from the sea.
It was formally named in 1979, in honor of Soviet geologist Mikhail Antonovich Usov.
Due to the landing of the Soviet Luna 24 mission in Crisium, in 1976, it was possible to collect samples of the local soil, thus facilitating its study.
My friend Chuck Wood comments in a 2013 article on LPOD; "This is the Russian corner of the Moon because two Lunas have already landed."
C14 f/11 + ASI 290MM + IR Pass 685
Mare crisium, March-08-2023; 04:25 you
Parsec Observatory, Brazil (-30ºS, -051.17ºW)
Source: LPOD/Cienctec, Astrobin/Avani Soares, LROC/NASA
Text and photo: Avani Soares

[Mr Spock]

Nice image. Very similar to the view I had a month or so ago with the 12". I'm always fascinated by what appears to be landslides on the face of Alhazen alpha.

[Roy Foreman]

Superb detail. Very nicely done.

[maw lod qan]

Excellent image and write up, as always!

[Kon]

Excellent image and the accompanying write up very informative as always.

[Paul M]

That's a stunning visage and writeup. 

What strikes me most here is that two of the great observatories, Yerkes and Lick, get unspectacular, flooded craters in their name! Some recognition!