240px, Oblique Lunar Orbiter 2 view, facing south
Oresme is a
crater on the
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
's
far side. It lies just to the west-northwest of the larger
Von Kármán. To the southwest of Oresme is
Chrétien, and to the northwest is the
Mare Ingenii
Mare Ingenii (Latin ''ingeniī'', the "Sea of Cleverness") is one of the few lunar mare features on the far side of the Moon. The mare sits in the Ingenii basin, which is of the Pre-Nectarian epoch, which lies in turn in the outer part of the ol ...
. This crater was believed to have formed during the
Nectarian epoch, about 4 billion years ago.
This crater has a considerably damaged outer rim that forms an uneven, irregular ring about the interior floor. By contrast, the floor of Oresme is a relatively level, featureless surface that is marked only by a few tiny craters and low topological features. The rim is cut across along the southeast by the satellite crater Oresme K, and a smaller crater lies along the northern rim.
Prior to formal naming in 1970 by the
IAU
The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...
, the crater was known as ''Crater 430''.
Lunar Farside Chart (LFC-1A)
/ref>
Satellite craters
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Oresme.
References
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* {{cite book
, first = Peter T.
, last = Wlasuk
, date = 2000
, title = Observing the Moon
, publisher = Springer
, isbn = 978-1-85233-193-1
Impact craters on the Moon
Nectarian
