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Template:Lunar crater Linné is a small lunar impact crater located in the western Mare Serenitatis. The maria around this feature is virtually devoid of other features of interest. The nearest named crater is Banting to the east-southeast.
The estimated age of this crater is only a few tens of millions of years. It has a bowl shape, and is surrounded by a blanket of ejecta formed during the original impact. But it lacks a ray system. This ejecta has a relatively high albedo, making the feature appear "bright".
Hrp111.jpg
Linné crater from orbit.
The crater size tests the limit of visual perception of Earth-based telescopes. In conditions of poor seeing this feature can appear to vanish from sight. In 1866, the experienced lunar observer and mapmaker Johann Friedrich Julius Schmidt made the surprising claim that Linné had changed its appearance. Instead of a normal, somewhat deep crater it had become a mere white patch (as it appears to this day).
A controversy arose that continued for many decades. Although Schmidt was an experienced lifelong observer, no similar permanent change has ever been observed on the Moon, and many consider that he must have been mistaken. Many efforts have been made to observe transient lunar phenomena with little success. The mystery remains.
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 Linné crater.
| Linné | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | 28.9° N | 14.4° E | 4 km |
| B | 30.5° N | 14.2° E | 5 km |
| D | 28.7° N | 17.1° E | 5 km |
| F | 32.3° N | 13.9° E | 5 km |
| G | 35.9° N | 13.3° E | 5 km |
| H | 33.7° N | 13.8° E | 3 km |
The following craters have been renamed by the IAU.
- Linné E — See Banting crater.
External links
- LTO-42A4 Linne (http://www.lpi.usra.edu/resources/mapcatalog/LTO/lto42a4_2/) — L&PI topographic map