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Daedalus (crater)

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Daedalus
Looking southward toward the lunar farside crater Daedalus, from Apollo 11 (NASA photo)
Coordinates5°54′S 179°24′E / 5.9°S 179.4°E / -5.9; 179.4
Diameter93.61 km (58.17 mi)[1]
Depth3.0 km (1.9 mi)
Colongitude181° at sunrise
FormationEarly Imbrian[2]
EponymDaedalus
Lunar Orbiter 2 image
Closeup of the interior from Apollo 11

Daedalus is a prominent crater located near the center of the far side of the Moon,[3] close to the antipode from the Earth.[4] It has a diameter of 94 km.[1] Nearby craters of note include Icarus to the east and Racah to the south. Less than a crater diameter to the north-northeast is Lipskiy.[5]

This formation dates to the Early Imbrian epoch of the lunar geologic timescale.[2] It is a well-formed impact feature that has not undergone significant degradation due to subsequent impacts. The inner wall is terraced, and there is a cluster of central peaks on the relatively flat floor.[6]: 86  The infrared spectrum of pure crystalline plagioclase has been identified on the central peaks.[7] The smaller crater Daedalus B is attached to the north northeastern rim.

Because its location is shielded from radio emissions from the Earth,[4] it has been proposed as the site of a future giant radio telescope.[8] This would be scooped out of the crater itself, much like the Arecibo radio telescope, but on a vastly larger scale.

The crater is named after Daedalus, the father of Icarus in Greek mythology.[9] It is famously pictured in photographs taken by the Apollo 11 astronauts. In contemporary sources it was called Crater 308, and this was a temporary IAU designation that preceded the establishment of far-side lunar nomenclature.[10] Its modern designation was formally adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1970.[1]

Satellite craters

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By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Daedalus.[11]

Daedalus[6]: 296  Latitude Longitude Diameter
B 4.1° S 179.8° W 23 km
C 4.1° S 178.9° W 68 km
G 6.6° S 177.4° W 33 km
K 8.3° S 178.5° W 24 km
M 8.1° S 179.5° E 13 km
R 7.7° S 175.2° E 41 km
S 6.8° S 172.9° E 20 km
U 4.2° S 174.9° E 30 km
W 3.5° S 177.5° E 70 km

On the lunar geologic timescale, Daedalus U is a degraded crater that dates from the Nectarian period.[12]

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 "Daedalus". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program. Retrieved 2026-07-19.
  2. 1 2 Tompkins, Stefanie; Pieters, Carle M. (January 1999). "Mineralogy of the lunar crust: Results from Clementine". Meteoritics & Planetary Science. 34 (1): 25–41. Bibcode:1999M&PS...34...25T. doi:10.1111/j.1945-5100.1999.tb01729.x.
  3. ↑ Moore, Patrick (2000). The Data Book of Astronomy. CRC Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-1-4200-3344-1.
  4. 1 2 Maccone, Claudio (July 2008). "Protected antipode circle on the Farside of the Moon". Acta Astronautica. 63 (1–4): 110–118. Bibcode:2008AcAau..63..110M. doi:10.1016/j.actaastro.2007.12.022.
  5. ↑ Byrne, Charles J. (2008). The Far Side of the Moon. Springer. pp. 29, 81. ISBN 978-1-4899-8806-5.
  6. 1 2 Bussey, B.; Spudis, P. (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81528-4.
  7. ↑ Donaldson Hanna, K. L.; et al. (July 2014). "Global assessment of pure crystalline plagioclase across the Moon and implications for the evolution of the primary crust". Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets. 119 (7): 1516–1545. Bibcode:2014JGRE..119.1516D. doi:10.1002/2013JE004476.
  8. ↑ Graham-Rowe, Duncan (January 3, 2002). "Astronomers plan telescope on Moon". New Scientist. Retrieved 2026-05-15.
  9. ↑ Menzel, D. H.; et al. (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.
  10. ↑ "Lunar Farside Chart (LFC-1A)" (2nd ed.). Lunar & Planetary Institute. October 1967. Retrieved 2026-05-15.
  11. ↑ Grego, P. (2015). "Satellite Crater". In Hargitai, H.; Kereszturi, Á. (eds.). Encyclopedia of Planetary Landforms. New York, NY: Springer. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-3134-3_328.
  12. ↑ Purohit, Suchit; et al. (October 10, 2018). "Automatic crater classification framework based on shape parameters". Current Science. 115 (7). Current Science Association: 1351–1358. JSTOR 26978409.
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