Chapter 7

CHACORNAC.--This object, connected with Posidonius on the S.W., is remarkable for the brilliancy of its border and the peculiarity of its shape, which is very clearly that of an irregular pentagon with linear sides. I always find the detail within very difficult to make out. Two or more low ridges, traversing the floor from N. to S., and a small crater, are, however, clearly visible under oblique illumination. Schmidt draws a crater-rill, and Neison two parallel rills on the floor,--the former extends in a southerly direction to the W. side of Le Monnier.

DANIELL.--A bright little ring-plain N. of Posidonius. It is connected with a smaller ring-plain on the N.W. wall of the latter by a low ridge.

BOND, G.P.--A small bright ring-plain 12 miles in diameter, W. of Posidonius. Neison shows a crater both on the N. and S. rim. Schmidt omits these.

MAURY.--A bright deep little ring-plain, about 12 miles in diameter, on the W. border of the Lacus Somniorum. It is the centre of four prominent hill ranges.

GROVE.--A bright deep ring-plain, 15 miles in diameter, in the Lacus Somniorum, with a border rising 7000 feet above a greatly depressed floor, which includes a prominent mountain.

MASON.--The more westerly of two remarkable ring-plains, situated in the highlands on the S. side of the Lacus Mortis. It is 14 miles in diameter, has a distinct crater on its S. wall, and, according to Schmidt, a crater on the E. side of the floor.

PLANA.--A formation 23 miles in diameter, closely associated with the last. Neison states that the floor is convex and higher than the surrounding region. It has a triangular-shaped central mountain, a crater, and at least three other depressions on the S.W. wall where it joins Mason.

BURG.--A noteworthy formation, 28 miles in diameter, on the Mare, N. of Plana. The floor is concave, and includes a very large bright mountain, which occupies a great portion of it. The interior slopes are prominently terraced, and there are several spurs associated with the _glacis_ on the S. and N.E. A distinct cleft runs from the N. side of the formation to the S.E. border of the Lacus Somniorum, which is crossed by another winding cleft running from a crater E. of Plana towards the N.E.

BAILY.--A small ring-plain, N. of Burg, flanked by mountains, with a large bright crater on the W. The group of mountains standing about midway between it and Burg are very noteworthy.

GARTNER.--A very large walled-plain with a low incomplete border on the E., but defined on the W. by a lofty wall. Schmidt shows a curved crater- row on the W. side of the floor.

DEMOCRITUS.--A deep regular ring-plain, about 25 miles in diameter, with a bright central mountain and lofty terraced walls.

ARNOLD.--A great enclosure, bounded, like so many other formations hereabouts, by straight parallel walls. There is a somewhat smaller walled-plain adjoining it on the W.

MOIGNO.--A ring-plain with a dark floor, adjoining the last on the N.E. There is a conspicuous little crater in the interior.

EUCTEMON.--This object is so close to the limb that very little can be made of its details under the most favourable conditions. According to Neison, there is a peak on the N. wall 11,000 feet in height.

METON.--A peculiarly-shaped walled-plain of great size, exhibiting considerable parallelism. The floor is seen to be very rugged under oblique illumination.

WEST LONGITUDE 20 deg. TO 0 deg.

SABINE.--The more westerly of a remarkable pair of ring-plains, of which Ritter is the other member, situated on the E. side of the Mare Tranquilitatis a little N. of the lunar equator. It is about 18 miles in diameter, and has a low continuous border, which includes a central mountain on a bright floor. From a mountain arm extending from the S. wall, run in a westerly direction two nearly parallel clefts skirting the edge of the Mare. The more southerly of these terminates near a depression on a rocky headland projecting from the coast-line, and the other stops a few miles short of this. A third cleft, commencing at a point N.E. of the headland, runs in the same direction up to a small crater near the N. end of another cape-like projection. At 8 h. on April 9, 1886, when the morning terminator bisected Sabine, I traced it still farther in the same direction. All these clefts exhibit considerable variations in width, but become narrower as they proceed westwards.

RITTER.--Is very similar in every respect to the last. A curved rill mentioned by Neison is on the N.E. side of the floor and is concentric with the wall. On the N. side of this ring-plain are three conspicuous craters, the two nearer being equal in size and the third much smaller.

SCHMIDT.--A bright crater at the foot of the S. slope of Ritter.

DIONYSIUS.--This crater, 13 miles in diameter, is one of the brightest spots on the lunar surface. It stands on the E. border of the Mare, about 30 miles E.N.E. of Ritter. A distinct crater-row runs round its outer border on the W., and ultimately, as a delicate cleft, strikes across the Mare to the E. side of Ritter. Both crater-row and cleft are easy objects in a 4 inch achromatic under morning illumination.

ARIADAEUS.--A bright little crater of polygonal shape, with another crater of about one-third the area adjoining it on the N.W., situated on the rocky E. margin of the Mare Tranquilitatis, N.E. of Ritter. A short cleft runs from it towards the latter, but dies out about midway. A second cleft begins near its termination, and runs up to the N.E. wall of Ritter. E. of this pair a third distinct cleft, originating at a point on the coast-line about midway between Ariadaeus and Dionysius, ends near the same place on the border. There is a fourth cleft extending from the N. side of a little bay N. of Ariadaeus across the Mare to a point N.W. of the more northerly of the three craters N. of Ritter. At a small crater on the S. flank of the mountains bordering the little bay N. of Ariadaeus originates one of the longest and most noteworthy clefts on the moon's visible surface, discovered more than a century ago by Schroter of Lilienthal. It varies considerably in breadth and depth, but throughout its course over the plain, between Ariadaeus and Silberschlag, it can be followed without difficulty in a very small telescope. E. of the latter formation, towards Hyginus (with which rill-system it is connected), it is generally more difficult. A few miles E. of Ariadaeus it sends out a short branch, running in a S.W. direction, which can be traced as a fine white line under a moderately high sun. It is interesting to follow the course of the principal cleft across the plain, and to note its progress through the ridges and mountain groups it encounters. In the great Lick telescope it is seen to traverse some old crater-rings which have not been revealed in smaller instruments. About midway between Ariadaeus and Silberschlag it exhibits a duplication for a short distance, first detected by Webb.

DE MORGAN.--A brilliant little crater, 4 miles in diameter, on the plain S. of the Ariadaeus cleft.

CAYLEY.--A very deep bright crater, with a dark interior, N. of the last, and more than double its diameter. There is a second crater between this and the cleft.

WHEWELL.--Another bright little ring, about 3 miles in diameter, some distance to the E. of De Morgan and Cayley.

SOSIGENES.--A small circular ring-plain, 14 miles in diameter, with narrow walls, a central mountain, and a minute crater outside the wall on the E.; situated on the E. side of the Mare Tranquilitatis, W. of Julius Caesar. There is another crater, about half its diameter, on the S., connected with it by a low mound. This has a still smaller crater on the W. of it.

JULIUS CAESAR.--A large incomplete formation of irregular shape. The wall on the E. is much terraced, and forms a flat "S" curve. The summit ridge is especially bright, and has a conspicuous little crater upon it. On the W. is a number of narrow longitudinal valleys trending from N. to S., included by a wide valley which constitutes the boundary on this side. The border on the S. consists of a number of low rounded banks, those immediately E. of Sosigenes being traversed by several shallow valleys, which look as if they had been shaped by alluvial action. There is a brilliant little hill at the end of one of these valleys, a few miles E. of Sosigenes. The floor of Julius Caesar is uneven in tone, becoming gradually duskier from S. to N., the northern end ranking among the darkest areas on the lunar surface. There are at least three large circular swellings in the interior. A long low mound, with two or three depressions upon it, bounds the wide valley on the E. side.

GODIN.--A square-shaped ring-plain, 28 miles in diameter, with rounded corners. The bright rampart is everywhere lofty, except on the S., is much terraced, and includes a central mountain. On the S. a curious trumpet-shaped valley, extending some distance towards the S.W., and bounded by bright walls, is a noteworthy feature at sunrise. There are other longitudinal valleys with associated ridges on this side of the formation, all running in the same direction. There is a large bright crater outside the border on the N.E., and, between it and the wall, another, smaller, which is readily seen under a high sun.

AGRIPPA.--A ring-plain 28 miles in diameter on the N. of the last, with a terraced border rising to a height of between 7000 and 8000 feet above the floor, which contains a large bright central mountain and two craters on the S. The shape of this formation deviates very considerably from circularity, the N. wall, on which stands a small crater, being almost lineal. On the W., at a distance of a few miles, runs the prominent mountain range, extending northwards nearly up to the E. flank of Julius Caesar, which bounds the E. side of the great Ariadaeus plain. Between this rocky barrier and Agrippa is a very noteworthy enclosure containing much minute detail and a long straight ridge resembling a cleft. A few miles N. of Agrippa stands a small crater; at a point W. of which the Hyginus cleft originates.

SILBERSCHLAG.--A very brilliant crater, 8 or 9 miles in diameter, connected with the great mountain range just referred to. The Ariadaeus cleft cuts through the range a few miles N. of it. This neighbourhood at sunrise presents a grand spectacle. With high powers under good atmospheric conditions, the plain E. of the mountains is seen to be traversed by a number of shallow winding valleys, trending towards Agrippa, and separated by low rounded hills which have all the appearance of having been moulded by the action of water.

BOSCOVICH.--This is not a very striking telescopic object under any phase, on account of its broken, irregular, and generally ill-defined border. It is, however, remarkable as being one of the darkest spots on the visible surface: in this respect a fit companion to Julius Caesar, its neighbour on the W. Schmidt shows some ridges within it.

RHAETICUS.--A very interesting formation, about 25 miles in diameter, situated near the lunar equator, with a border intersected by many passes. A deep rill-like valley winds round its eastern _glacis_, commencing on the S. at a small circular enclosure standing at the end of a spur from the wall; and, after crossing a ridge W. of a bright little crater on the N. of the formation, apparently joins the most easterly cleft of the Triesnecker system. A cleft traverses the N. side of the floor of Rhaeticus, and extends across the plain on the E. as far as the N. side of Reaumur.

TRIESNECKER.--Apart from being the centre of one of the most remarkable rill-systems on the moon, this ring-plain, though only about 14 miles in diameter, is an object especially worthy of examination under every phase. At sunrise, and for some time afterwards, owing to the superior altitude of the N.W. section of the wall, a considerable portion of the border on the N. and N.E. is masked by its shadow, which thus appears to destroy its continuity. On more than one occasion, friends, to whom I have shown this object under these conditions, have likened it to a breached volcanic cone, a comparison which at a later stage is seen to be very inappropriate. The rampart is terraced within, and exhibits many spurs and buttresses without, especially on the N.W. The central mountain is small and not conspicuous. The rill-system is far too complicated to be intelligibly described in words. It lies on the W. side of the meridian passing through the formation, and extends from the N. side of Rhaeticus to the mountain-land lying between Ukert and Hyginus on the N. Birt likened these rills to "an inverted river system," a comparison which will commend itself to most observers who have seen them on a good night, for in many instances they appear to become wider and deeper as they approach higher ground. Published maps are all more or less defective in their representations of them, especially as regards that portion of the system lying N. of Triesnecker.

HYGINUS.--A deep depression, rather less than 4 miles across, with a low rim of varying altitude, having a crater on its N. edge. This formation is remarkable for the great cleft which traverses it, discovered by Schroter in 1788. The coarser parts of this object are easily visible in small telescopes, and may be glimpsed under suitable conditions with a 2 inch achromatic. Commencing a little W. of a small crater N. of Agrippa, it crosses, as a very delicate object, a plain abounding in low ridges and shallow valleys, and runs nearly parallel to the eastern extension of the Ariadaeus rill. As it approaches Hyginus it becomes gradually coarser, and exhibits many expansions and contractions, the former in many cases evidently representing craters. When the phase is favourable, it can be followed across the floor of Hyginus, and I have frequently seen the banks with which it appears to be bounded (at any rate within the formation), standing out as fine bright parallel lines amid the shadow. On reaching the E. wall, it turns somewhat more to the N., becomes still coarser and more irregular in breadth, and ultimately expands into a wide valley on the N.E. It is connected with the Ariadaeus cleft by a branch which leaves the latter at an acute angle on the plain E. of Silberschlag, and joins it about midway between its origin N. of Agrippa and Hyginus. It is also probably joined to the Triesnecker system by one or more branches E. of Hyginus.

On May 27, 1877, Dr. Hermann Klein of Cologne discovered, with a 5 1/2 inch Plosel dialyte telescope, a dark apparent depression without a rim in the Mare Vaporum, a few miles N.W. of Hyginus, which, from twelve years' acquaintance with the region, he was certain had not been visible during that period. On the announcement of this discovery in the _Wochenschrift fur Astronomie_ in March of the following year, the existence of the object described by Dr. Klein was confirmed, and it was sedulously scrutinised under various solar altitudes. To most observers it appeared as an ill-defined object with a somewhat nebulous border, standing on an irregularly-shaped dusky area, with two or more small dark craters and many low ridges in its vicinity. A little E. of it stands a curious spiral mountain called the Schneckenberg. The question as to whether Hyginus N. (as the dusky spot is called) is a new object or not, cannot be definitely determined, as, in spite of a strong case in favour of it being so, there remains a residuum of doubt and uncertainty that can never be entirely cleared away. After weighing, however, all that can be said "for and against," the hypothesis of change seems to be the most probable.

UKERT.--This bright crater, 14 miles in diameter, situated in the region N.E. of Triesnecker, is surrounded by a very complicated arrangement of mountains; and on the N. and W. is flanked by other enclosures. It has a distinct central mountain. Its most noteworthy feature is the great valley, more than 80 miles long, which extends from N.E. to S.W. on the E. side of it. This gorge is at least six miles in breadth, of great depth, and is only comparable in magnitude with the well-known valley which cuts through the Alps, W. of Plato. A delicate cleft, not very clearly traceable as a whole, begins near its N. end, and terminates amid the ramifications of the Apennines S. of Marco Polo.

TAQUET.--A conspicuous little crater on the S. border of the Mare Serenitatis at the foot of the Haemus Mountains. A branch of the great Serpentine ridge, which traverses the W. side of this plain and other lesser elevations, runs towards it.

MENELAUS.--A conspicuously bright regular ring-plain, about 20 miles in diameter, situated on the S. coast-line of the Mare Serenitatis, and closely associated with the Haemus range. It has a brilliant central mountain, but no visible detail on the walls. On the edge of the Mare, S.W. of it, there is a curious square formation. The bright streak traversing the Mare from N. to S., which is so prominently displayed in old maps of the moon, passes through this formation.

SULPICIUS GALLUS.--Another brilliant object on the south edge of the Mare Serenitatis, some distance E. of the last. It is a deep circular crater about 8 miles in diameter, rising to a considerable height above the surface. Its shadow under a low morning sun is prominently jagged. On the E. are two bright mounds, and S. of that which is nearer the border of the Mare, commences a cleft which, following the curvature of the coast- line, terminates at a point in W. long. 9 deg. This object varies considerably in width and depth. Another shorter and coarser cleft runs S. of this across an irregularly shaped bay or inflexion in the border of the Mare.

MANILIUS.--This, one of the most brilliant objects in the first quadrant, is about 25 miles in diameter, with walls nearly 8000 feet above the floor, which includes a bright central mountain. The inner slope of the border on the E. is much terraced and contains some depressions. There is a small isolated bright mountain 2000 feet high on the Mare Vaporum, some distance to the E.

BESSEL.--A bright circular crater, 14 miles in diameter, on the S. half of the Mare Serenitatis, and the largest object of its class thereon. Its floor is depressed some 2000 feet below the surrounding surface, while the walls, rising nearly 1600 feet above the plain, have peaks both on the N. and S. about 200 feet higher. The shadows of these features, noted by Schroter in 1797, and by many subsequent observers, are very noteworthy. I have seen the shadow of a third peak about midway between the two. One may faintly imagine the magnificent prospect of the coast- line of the Mare with the Haemus range, which would be obtained were it possible to stand on the summit of one of these elevations. It is doubtful whether Bessel has a central mountain. Neither Madler nor Schmidt have seen one, though Webb noted a peak on two occasions. I fail to see anything within the crater. The bright streak crossing the Mare from N. to S. passes through Bessel.

LINNE.--A formation on the E. side of the Mare Serenitatis, described by Lohrmann and Madler as a deep crater, but which in 1866 was found by Schmidt to have lost all the appearance of one. The announcement of this apparent change led to a critical examination of the object by most of the leading observers, and to a controversy which, if it had no other result, tended to awaken an interest in selenography that has been maintained ever since. According to Madler, the crater was more than 6 miles in diameter in his time, and very conspicuous under a low sun, a description to which it certainly did not answer in 1867 or at any subsequent epoch. It is anything but an easy object to see well, as there is a want of definiteness about it under the best conditions, though the minute crater, the low ridges, and the nebulous whiteness described by Schmidt and noted by Webb and others, are traceable at the proper phase. As in the case of Hyginus N, there are still many sceptics as regards actual change, despite the records of Lohrmann and Madler; but the evidence in favour of it seems to preponderate.

CONON.--A bright little crater, 11 miles in diameter, situated among the intricacies of the Apennines, S. of Mount Bradley. It has a central hill, which is not a difficult object.

ARATUS.--One of the most brilliant objects on the visible surface of the moon, a crater 7 miles in diameter, S. of Mount Hadley, surrounded by the lofty mountain arms and towering heights of the Apennines. A peak close by on the N. is more than 10,000 feet, and another farther removed towards the N.W. is over 14,000 feet in altitude.

AUTOLYCUS.--A ring-plain 23 miles in diameter, deviating considerably from circularity, W. of Archimedes, on the Mare Imbrium, or rather on that part of it termed the Palus Putredinis. Its floor, which contains an inconspicuous central mountain, is depressed some 4000 feet below the surrounding country. With a power of 150 on a 4 5/8 achromatic, Dr. Sheldon of Macclesfield has seen two shallow crateriform depressions in the interior, one nearly central, and the other about midway between it and the N. wall. The wall is terraced within, and has a crater just below its crest on the W., which, when the opposite border is on the morning terminator, is seen as a distinct notch. Autolycus is the centre of a minor ray-system.

ARISTILLUS.--A larger and much more elaborate ring-plain, 34 miles in diameter, N. of Autolycus. Its complex wall, with its terraces within, and its buttresses, radiating spurs, and gullies without, forms a grand telescopic object under a low sun on a good night. It rises on the east 11,000 feet above the Mare, and is about 2000 feet lower on the W., while the interior is depressed some 3000 feet. Its massive central mountain, surmounted by many peaks, occupies a considerable area on the floor, and exhibits a digitated outline at the base. On the S. and W. a number of deep valleys radiate from the foot of the border, some of them extending nearly as far as Autolycus. Shallower but more numerous and regular features of the same class radiate towards the N.E. from the foot of the opposite wall. On the N.W. are several curved ridges, all trending towards Theaetetus. On the S.E. the surface is trenched by a number of crossed gullies, well seen when the E. wall is on the morning terminator. Just beyond the N. _glacis_ is a large irregular dusky enclosure with a central mound, and another smaller low ring adjoining it on the S.E. The visibility of these objects is very ephemeral, as they disappear soon after sunrise. Aristillus is also the centre of a bright ray system.

THEAETETUS.--A conspicuous ring-plain, about 16 miles in diameter, in the Palus Nebularum, N.W. of Aristillus. It is remarkable for its great depth, the floor sinking nearly 5000 feet below the surface. Its walls, 7000 feet high on the W., are devoid of detail. The _glacis_ on the S.W. has a gentle slope, and extends for a great distance before it runs down to the level of the plain. Not far from the foot of the wall on the N. is a row of seven or eight bright little hills, near the eastern side of which originates a distinct cleft that crosses the Palus in a N.W. direction, and terminates among mountains between Cassini and Calippus. I have seen this object easily with a 4 inch achromatic.

CALIPPUS.--A bright ring-plain 17 miles in diameter, situated in the midst of the intricate Caucasus Mountain range. On the E. is a brilliant peak rising more than 13,000 feet above the Palus Nebularum, and nearer the border, on the N.E., is a second, more than 500 feet higher, with many others nearly as lofty in the vicinity. Calippus has not apparently a central peak or any other features on the floor.