Jeans is a lunar impact crater, on the southeastern limb of the Moon, with its majority lying on the far side. A favorable libration can bring the entire crater into view, but even then the details observable from Earth are very limited as the crater is viewed rather "edge-on".
 Lunar Orbiter 4 image | |
| Coordinates | 55°48′S 91°24′E / 55.8°S 91.4°E |
|---|---|
| Diameter | 79 km |
| Depth | Unknown |
| Colongitude | 270° at sunrise |
| Eponym | James Jeans |
Jeans is located nearly midway between the much larger walled plain Lyot on the near side and the crater Chamberlin on the far side. It has a heavily worn and rounded outer rim, and several impacts lie along the southern and southeastern edge and inner wall. The most prominent of these intersecting craters are Jeans G across the eastern rim. The interior floor of the main crater has been resurfaced by basaltic lava, leaving a dark level surface marked only by a few tiny craterlets.
Satellite craters
editBy convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Jeans.
| Jeans | Latitude | Longitude | Diameter |
|---|---|---|---|
| B | 52.4° S | 94.8° E | 11 km |
| G | 56.0° S | 93.3° E | 22 km |
| N | 58.7° S | 90.5° E | 64 km |
| S | 56.8° S | 86.8° E | 56 km |
| U | 54.7° S | 86.5° E | 57 km |
| X | 53.5° S | 89.4° E | 44 km |
| Y | 51.2° S | 90.5° E | 17 km |
References
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