Geological Chronicle
Located on the rugged southern far side of the Moon, Boyle spans 57.13 kilometers across and lies adjacent to the larger crater Hess to the southeast. The formation sits about midway between Alder to the north-northeast and Abbe to the south-southwest, dating to the Pre-Nectarian period on the lunar geologic timescale.
Boyle maintains a nearly circular outer rim that is mostly sharp-edged and displays little wear from subsequent impacts, although some slumping lines the interior. An irregular, wide groove cuts the southern rim from east to west, and tiny craterlets overlap the narrow strip of terrain joining Boyle to Hess.
The interior floor is relatively flat, marked by a long, low central ridge aligned from southwest to northeast. Spectra of this rise fit an olivine-bearing gabbroic norite mineralogy that originated from a depth of 5.7 to 8.7 kilometers.
The crater is named after British natural philosopher and chemist Robert Boyle. The International Astronomical Union officially adopted the designation in 1970.