Moonlit sea

Moon Moon - (visually) a dark spot on the surface of the lunar disk .

Content

General Description

For the first time, lunar seas appeared on a map of the moon, drawn in 1652 by the Italian astronomer Giovanni Riccioli and the Italian physicist Francesco Grimaldi . Water, as it turned out later, was not in them, but the term “sea” and the names of the seas shown on the map have survived to this day.

Lunar seas are the largest details of the relief of the moon. The seas are lowlands (for example, the Sea of Rains is located 3 km below the surrounding area) with a flat bottom, flooded with hardened lava. Frozen lava is characterized by a darker color than the rest of the moon, and this explains the grayish-brownish hue characteristic of the lunar seas. The seas are covered with volcanic rocks - basalts , whose age is estimated at 3 - 4.5 billion years. The outlines of the boundaries of the lunar seas are rounded in a predominant number of cases. Size ranges from 200 to 1100 kilometers across. On the surface of the lunar sea plains there are folds and small mountain peaks of a lighter color, protruding from under a layer of basalts. There are significantly fewer craters on the surface of the lunar seas than on the bright elevated areas - the lunar continents.

The largest lowland is called the Ocean of Storms . Its length is 2000 km. The marginal zones of the seas, which resemble bays, as well as the dark depressions in the form of lakes, were given names corresponding to their appearance ^[1] . Around the seas are ring-shaped mountain ranges. The Sea of Rains is surrounded by the Alps , Caucasus , Apennines , Carpathians , Jura . Nectar Sea - Altai and Pyrenees mountains. The East Sea is surrounded by the Cordillera and the Ruk mountains . In the seas, sometimes there are ledges - faults; the most famous ledge - the Straight Wall is in the Sea of Clouds .

On the far side of the moon the seas are much smaller than on the visible side and they are small in size. There is an assumption that the marine formations on the moon formed as a result of only a few collisions. The craters formed as a result of the impacts filled with lava and gave rise to mascones . Lava rocks are heavier than the mainland, which could cause an asymmetry in the distribution of lunar mass, as a result of which the Earth's gravity forever fixed the “sea” hemisphere of the Moon in the direction of our planet ^[2] . The reverse side of the moon is characterized by “pools” - very large circular structures with a diameter of more than 300 km. The East Sea, the Moscow Sea and others have two annular shafts - external and internal, with a diameter ratio of 2/1. Sometimes the inner rings are severely destroyed ^[3] .

In Western countries, Latin names are used and the word mare / maria = sea / seas.

Some Moonlight Facts

The Poznan Sea got its name after the American Ranger-7 probe descended here in 1964 , the first to receive close-up images of the lunar surface, much more detailed than a telescope view from Earth.
The Sea of Tranquility is famous for the fact that it was here that man first set foot on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969 . It was the American astronaut Neil Armstrong .
In the Sea of Plenty, the Soviet probe Luna-16 ( 1970 ) took a sample of lunar soil and delivered it to Earth.
South of the Rainbow Bay , the first planet rover Lunokhod-1 ( 1970 - 1971 ) was conducting research.
On the border of the Sea of Clarity, he conducted research on the Lunokhod-2 planet rover ( 1973 ) ^[4] .

The names of the seas, bays, lakes and swamps on the visible side of the moon

Seas and Gulfs on the Moon.

The Russian name is the Latin name ^[5] .

Ocean of Storms - Oceanus Procellarum (1)

Seas

Sea of Humidity - Mare Humorum (6)
East Sea - Mare Orientale
Sea of Waves - Mare Undarum (14)
Humboldt Sea - Mare Humboldtianum (19)
Sea of Rains - Mare Imbrium (2)
Snake Sea - Mare Anguis (18)
Sea of Plenty - Mare Fecunditatis (12)
Sea Regional - Mare Marginis (16)
Sea of Crises - Mare Crisium (17)
Sea of Nectar - Mare Nectaris (11)
Sea of Clouds - Mare Nubium (7)
Sea of Islands - Mare Insularum (4)
Sea Of Vapors - Mare Vaporum (8)
Sea of Foam - Mare Spumans (13)
Sea of Cognition - Mare Cognitum (5)
Smith Sea - Mare Smythii (15)
Sea of Tranquility - Mare Tranquillitatis (10)
Sea of Cold - Mare Frigoris (3)
South Sea - Mare Australe
Sea of Clarity - Mare Serenitatis (9)

Gulfs

Bay of Loyalty - Sinus Fidei (23)
Gulf of Heat - Sinus Aestum (24)
Lunar Bay - Sinus Lunicus (22)
Bay of Love - Sinus Amoris (29)
Rainbow Bay - Sinus Iridum (21)
Gulf of Dew - Sinus Roris (20)
Bay of Glory - Sinus Honoris (26)
Bay of Concord - Sinus Concordiae (28)
Bay of Severity - Sinus Asperitatis (27)
Bay of Fortune - Sinus Successus (30)
Central Bay - Sinus Medii (25)

Lakes

Awe Lake - Lacus Timoris ( err . - Lacus Tumoris )
Spring Lake - Lacus Veris
Lake of Eternity - Lacus Temporis
Oblivion Lake - Lacus Oblivionis
Winters Lake - Lacus Hiemalis
Lake of Justice - Lacus Bonitatis
Summer Lake - Lacus Aestatis
Lake of Hope - Lacus Spei
Persistence Lake - Lacus Perseverantiae
Lake of Tenderness - Lacus Lenitatis
Hate Lake - Lacus Odii
Autumn Lake - Lacus Autumni
Lake of Sorrows - Lacus Doloris
Lake of Excellence - Lacus Excellentiae
Joy Lake - Lacus Gaudii
Death Lake - Lacus Mortis
Dream Lake - Lacus Somniorum
Happiness Lake - Lacus Felicitatis

Swamps

Swamp of Rotting - Palus Putredinis
Swamp of Sleep - Palus Somni
Epidemic Swamp - Palus Epidemiarum

The names of the seas and lakes on the far side of the moon