Galvani is a

lunar Lunar most commonly means "of or relating to the Moon". Lunar may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lunar'' (series), a series of video games * "Lunar" (song), by David Guetta * "Lunar", a song by Priestess from the 2009 album ''Prior t ...

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 ...

that lies close to the northwestern limb of the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

, due south of the larger walled plain Volta. It partly overlies the southeast rim of the crater Langley, which occupies half the gap between Volta and Galvani. To the northeast is the large walled plain Repsold, and to the west-southwest, on the

far side ''The Far Side'' is a single-panel comic created by Gary Larson and syndicated by Chronicle Features and then Universal Press Syndicate, which ran from December 31, 1979, to January 1, 1995 (when Larson retired as a cartoonist). Its surrealis ...

of the Moon, is the crater McLaughlin. Due to its location, Galvani is viewed from an oblique angle from the

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

, and it appears highly foreshortened. The visibility of this crater is affected by

libration In lunar astronomy, libration is the cyclic variation in the apparent position of the Moon that is perceived by observers on the Earth and caused by changes between the orbital and rotational planes of the moon. It causes an observer to see ...

of the Moon, so that at times this crater can be hidden from sight. The rim of Galvani is worn and rounded, with a crater lying along the inner wall to the southwest. The southwestern rim has been modified, and appears straighter than the otherwise circular shape of the perimeter. The inner wall is wider along the western side compared to the east, and thus the midpoint of the level interior floor is offset slightly to the east. A

rille Rille (German for 'groove') is typically used to describe any of the long, narrow depressions in the surface of the Moon that resemble channels. The Latin term is ''rima'', plural ''rimae''. Typically, a rille can be several kilometers w ...

from the Rimae Repsold system crosses the northeastern rim and traverses the interior, forking near the midpoint to continue towards the west-southwest and the south. The crater floor is otherwise fractured as well. It was named 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 1961 after

Luigi Galvani Luigi Galvani ( , , ; ; 9 September 1737 – 4 December 1798) was an Italian physician, physicist, biologist and philosopher who studied animal electricity. In 1780, using a frog, he discovered that the muscles of dead frogs' legs twitched when ...

, an Italian physicist.Galvani
Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN)

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 Galvani.

References

* * * * * * * * * * * * {{refend Impact craters on the Moon