Bancroft is a small, bowl-shaped

impact crater An impact crater is a depression (geology), depression in the surface of a solid astronomical body formed by the hypervelocity impact event, impact of a smaller object. In contrast to volcanic craters, which result from explosion or internal c ...

located to the southwest of

Archimedes Archimedes of Syracuse ( ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Greek mathematics, mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and Invention, inventor from the ancient city of Syracuse, Sicily, Syracuse in History of Greek and Hellenis ...

on the

Mare Imbrium Mare Imbrium (Latin ''imbrium'', the "Sea of Showers" or "Sea of Rains") is a vast lunar mare, lava plain within the Imbrium Basin on the Moon and is one of the larger craters in the Solar System. The Imbrium Basin formed from the collision ...

. A wide, shallow depression runs from the rim of Bancroft southeast to the

Montes Archimedes Montes Archimedes is a mountain range on the Moon. It is named after the nearby crater Archimedes, which in turn is named after the ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes. This group of mountains is located on a plateau in the eastern part of t ...

. There are some clefts at the edge of the

mare A mare is an adult female horse or other equidae, equine. In most cases, a mare is a female horse over the age of three, and a filly is a female horse three and younger. In Thoroughbred horse racing, a mare is defined as a female horse more th ...

to the west and southwest of the crater. Other prominent craters are two small craters nearly to the west named Feuillée and

Beer Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...

. Bancroft has a linear ridge in the center of its floor, which is unusual for a crater of 13 km diameter. It was named after American chemist Wilder D. Bancroft. Bancroft was previously identified as Archimedes A before being renamed by the

IAU The International Astronomical Union (IAU; , UAI) is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach, education, and developmen ...

in 1976.

References

* * * * * * * * * * *

External links

* Impact craters on the Moon Mare Imbrium {{Craters on the Moon: A–B