Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2019 November 11

                    Lunar Craters Langrenus and Petavius
            Image Credit & Copyright: Eduardo Schaberger Poupeau

   Explanation: The history of the Moon is partly written in its craters.
   Pictured here is a lunar panorama taken from Earth featuring the large
   craters Langrenus, toward the left, and Petavius, toward the right. The
   craters formed in separate impacts. Langrenus spans about 130 km, has a
   terraced rim, and sports a central peak rising about 3 km. Petavius is
   slightly larger with a 180 km diameter and has a distinctive fracture
   that runs out from its center. Although it is known that Petravius
   crater is about 3.9 billion years old, the origin of its large fracture
   is unknown. The craters are best visible a few days after a new Moon,
   when shadows most greatly accentuate vertical walls and hills. The
   featured image is a composite of the best of thousands of
   high-resolution, infrared, video images taken through a small
   telescope. Although mountains on Earth will likely erode into soil over
   a billion years, lunar craters Langrenus and Petavius will likely
   survive many billions more years, possibly until the Sun expands and
   engulfs both the Earth and Moon.

     Watch: the November 11 Transit of Mercury from Earth or from Space.
                   Tomorrow's picture: spiraling sideways
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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