Contains:  Solar system body or event
Copernicus and Kepler, Marco Lorenzi

Copernicus and Kepler

Acquisition type: Lucky imaging
Copernicus and Kepler, Marco Lorenzi

Copernicus and Kepler

Acquisition type: Lucky imaging

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Description

One of the most prominent and striking craters on the Moon, Copernicus (at the right in the image) is found in the Oceanus Procellarum, slightly northwest of the center of the Moon's face. 
It has a vaguely hexagonal shape with beautiful terraced walls and in the center it does not have a single mountain but several peaks and groups of hills.
Copernicus is easily spotted whenever it is sunlit because it is in the heart of a massive system of rays that extend at least 800 kilometers across the surrounding sea, overlapping with rays from other craters, notably Kepler's crater visible on the left of the image. 
These lunar rays are strips of material ejected during the impact that formed the crater and look somewhat like the thin spokes coming from the hub of a wheel. Several smaller craters are visible all around Copernicus, with some of these forming sinuous chains.

North of Copernicus are the Montes Carpatus which to the west (left in the picture) disperse to form sparser hills. Further west is Kepler with its impressive system of Splash Rays extending over 300 kilometers over the Oceano Procellarum. The ejecta mantle appears lighter in contrasts to the dark basaltic materials of the surrounding ocean. Below Kepler is the interesting Encke crater, with its low rim and somewhat polygonal shape.

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Copernicus and Kepler, Marco Lorenzi