A17 PSR Fig 6-59 Shorty Crater cross section

Shorty is a feature on Earth's

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 ...

, an

impact crater An impact crater is a circular depression in the surface of a solid astronomical object formed by the hypervelocity impact of a smaller object. In contrast to volcanic craters, which result from explosion or internal collapse, impact crater ...

in the Taurus–Littrow valley.APOD - June 24, 2012
/ref> Astronauts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt visited it in 1972, on the Apollo 17 mission. It is the location of the famous "orange soil", which geologists believe to be small bits of rapidly-cooled molten rock ejected in a fire fountain. It is about in diameter and up to deep.LROC - Just Another Crater?
/ref> To the east of Shorty are

Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes a ...

Camelot Camelot is a castle and court associated with the legendary King Arthur. Absent in the early Arthurian material, Camelot first appeared in 12th-century French romances and, since the Lancelot-Grail cycle, eventually came to be described as the ...

, and the Apollo 17 landing site. To the southeast is Brontë. To the southwest are

Lara Lara may refer to: Places * Lara (state), a state in Venezuela * Electoral district of Lara, an electoral district in Victoria, Australia * Lara, Antalya, an urban district in Turkey * Lara, Victoria, a township in Australia * Lara de los ...

and

Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 186113 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, and humanitarian. He led the team t ...

. The crater was named after the character "Shorty" in Richard Brautigan's 1967 novel '' Trout Fishing in America'', as well as to honor the genre of the

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest t ...

with particular reference to J. D. Salinger.The Valley of Taurus-Littrow
Apollo 17 Lunar Surface Journal, Corrected Transcript and Commentary Copyright 1995 by Eric M. Jones File:Shorty crater AS17-P-2750 ASU.jpg, Apollo 17 panoramic camera image File:As17-137-21009.jpg, Exploring Shorty crater during the Apollo 17 mission to the Moon. The orange soil was found to the right of the rover, at the base of the small hill at the crater rim. File:Apollo 17 orange soil.jpg, Orange soil found next to Shorty, which turned out to be titanium-rich pyroclastic glass File:A17 PSR Figure 6-111 Station 4.gif, Planimetric map of Station 4 including the rim of Shorty

References

External links

*
VR panorama43D1S2(25) Apollo 17 Traverses
at Lunar and Planetary Institute
Geological Investigation of the Taurus-Littrow Valley: Apollo 17 Landing Site
{{Apollo program Impact craters on the Moon Apollo 17 Harrison Schmitt Gene Cernan