The Montes Spitzbergen (Spitzbergen Mountains) is a solitary mountain chain in the eastern

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 ...

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 ...

. It is located about 80 km to the north of the flooded crater

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 ...

. The range trends from south to north, consisting of a number of peaks separated by

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a Natural satellite, moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a Fissure vent, fractu ...

-flooded

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...

s, and has a maximum width of about 25 km. It is thought to be the surviving rim or inner ring of an impact crater that has been buried under magma flows. The range was named by Mary Blagg for its resemblance to the jagged terrestrial mountains of the

Spitzbergen Svalbard ( , ), previously known as Spitsbergen or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago that lies at the convergence of the Arctic Ocean with the Atlantic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it lies about midway between the northern coast o ...

island group. The name was approved by the

International Astronomical Union 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.Montes Spitzbergen
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 Montes Spitzbergen.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spitzbergen, Montes Mountains on the Moon Mare Imbrium