An Eroded Far Side Crater With Internal Satellite Craters

Feature Profile & Selenographic Data

Feature type

crater

Coordinates

15.33° S · 115.80° E

Diameter

97.97 km

IAU approval

1970/01/01 00:00:00

LAC quadrangle

LAC-83 · Langemak

Geological Chronicle

Situated on the Moon's far side, Kondratyuk is an eroded impact crater measuring 97.97 kilometers in diameter. The formation lies to the west-northwest of the large walled plain Fermi and to the northeast of Hilbert, with Meitner situated to the north-northwest and Langemak to the northeast.

Subsequent impacts have partly damaged the rim of Kondratyuk. Its interior floor encloses two satellite craters, including the small, sharp-rimmed Kondratyuk A along the northeast inner wall and Kondratyuk Q in the southwestern part of the floor.

Prior to formal naming by the International Astronomical Union, the feature was called Crater 278. The IAU officially assigned the name Kondratyuk in 1970 in honor of Yuri Kondratyuk, a Ukrainian and Soviet engineer and mathematician.

Chronology & Exploration

1. 1970 Formal IAU Designation

   The International Astronomical Union officially names the feature Kondratyuk, replacing its provisional designation of Crater 278.

Scientific Sources & References

• IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature — Official coordinates, diameter, and namesake
• Wikipedia: Kondratyuk (crater) — Morphology, satellite features, and historical designation

Name Origin

Yury Vasilyevich; Soviet rocketry scientist (1897-1942).