Perrine is a
lunar 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 is located on the northern
hemisphere
Hemisphere may refer to:
In geometry
* Hemisphere (geometry), a half of a sphere
As half of Earth or any spherical astronomical object
* A hemisphere of Earth
** Northern Hemisphere
** Southern Hemisphere
** Eastern Hemisphere
** Western Hemi ...
on the
far side 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 lies to the west of the large walled plain
Landau
Landau (), officially Landau in der Pfalz (, ), is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990), a long ...
, and to the northeast of the crater
Charlier. To the north-northwest is the smaller
Gullstrand.
This is an unusual formation that forms part of a chain of connected craters. The western two-thirds of Perrine is overlain by the slightly smaller Perrine S, so that Perrine is
crescent
A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase (as it appears in the northern hemisphere) in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself.
In Hindu iconography, Hind ...
-shaped. The western rim of Perrine S is overlain by the still-smaller Perrine T. Perrine S has a worn outer rim, and a small central peak in the middle of the floor.
The surviving rim of Perrine is worn and eroded, with the overlapping pair Perrine E and Perrine G intruding slightly into the eastern rim. A smaller crater has disrupted the southwest end of the outer rim, and a pair of small craters are attached to the northern rim.
Only a small portion of the interior floor of Perrine still survives, forming a crescent-shaped surface between the outer
rampart
Rampart may refer to:
* Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement
Rampart may also refer to:
* LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department
** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...
of Perrine S and the inner wall of Perrine. It is marked by a pair of tiny craterlets in the northern half.
The crater was formally 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 1970, after
Charles D. Perrine. The satellite craters Perrine G and Perrine S were called ''Crater 94'' and ''Crater 91'', respectively.
Lunar Farside Chart (LFC-1A)
2nd Edition October 1967
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 Perrine.
References
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Impact craters on the Moon