| Crater characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 15.4° N, 2.0° W |
| Diameter | 28 × 21 km |
| Depth | 1.1 km |
| Colongitude | 2° at sunrise |
| Eponym | Marco Polo |
Marco Polo is a lunar crater that is located in the rugged foothills to the south of the Montes Apenninus mountain range. It lies just 20 kilometers to the west of the Mare Vaporum, but is otherwise located in an undistinguished region of terrain with no notable craters nearby. This crater is elongated to the south-southeast, with a very eroded outer rim. The southern part of the rim is nearly nonexistent, and there is a narrow cleft at the northern end of the crater. Portions of the rim still remain along the west and northeast sides, but appear as little more than curved ridges. The interior has little detail of interest apart from a tiny craterlet along the southwest inner wall.
Satellite craters
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater mid-point that is closest to Marco Polo crater.
| Marco Polo | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 14.9° N | 2.0° W | 7 km |
| B | 17.2° N | 1.9° W | 7 km |
| C | 14.0° N | 5.0° W | 7 km |
| D | 15.0° N | 3.7° W | 6 km |
| F | 15.7° N | 4.5° W | 4 km |
| G | 16.7° N | 1.9° W | 5 km |
| H | 17.8° N | 1.7° W | 6 km |
| J | 17.9° N | 1.2° W | 5 km |
| K | 18.2° N | 1.4° W | 10 km |
| L | 14.8° N | 5.0° W | 19 km |
| M | 17.6° N | 1.1° W | 37 km |
| P | 16.9° N | 0.2° W | 31 km |
| S | 17.8° N | 0.0° E | 21 km |
| T | 13.6° N | 1.0° W | 3 km |
References
- Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A., (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
- Blue, Jennifer (July 25, 2007). Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS. Retrieved on 2007-08-05.
- Bussey, B.; Spudis, P., (2004). The Clementine Atlas of the Moon. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-81528-2.
- Cocks, Elijah E.; Cocks, Josiah C. (1995). Who's Who on the Moon: A Biographical Dictionary of Lunar Nomenclature. Tudor Publishers. ISBN 0-936389-27-3.
- McDowell, Jonathan (July 15, 2007). Lunar Nomenclature. Jonathan's Space Report. Retrieved on 2007-10-24.
- Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (1971). "Report on Lunar Nomenclature by The Working Group of Commission 17 of the IAU". Space Science Reviews 12: 136.
- Moore, Patrick (2001). On the Moon. Sterling Publishing Co.. ISBN 0-304-35469-4.
- Price, Fred W. (1988). The Moon observer's handbook. Cambridge University Press.
- Rükl, Antonín (1990). Atlas of the Moon. Kalmbach Books. ISBN 0-913135-17-8.
- Webb, Rev. T. W. (1962). Celestial Objects for Common Telescopes, 6th revision, Dover. ISBN 0-486-20917-2.
- Whitaker, Ewen A. (1999). Mapping and Naming the Moon. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-62248-4.
- Wlasuk, Peter T. (2000). Observing the Moon. Springer. ISBN 1852331933.
