A Degraded Far Side Rim Marked by Overlapping Impacts and Floor Fractures

Feature Profile & Selenographic Data

Feature type

crater

Coordinates

47.06° N · 160.08° W

Diameter

83.71 km

IAU approval

1970/01/01 00:00:00

LAC quadrangle

LAC-33 · Schneller

Geological Chronicle

Montgolfier is a worn lunar impact crater in the northern hemisphere of the Moon's far side, spanning 83.71 kilometers in diameter. Paraskevopoulos lies to its east-northeast, while Schneller is located to the southwest. The crater rim is degraded by small impacts, leaving a somewhat uneven perimeter.

The entire southern rim has been overlain by a cluster of four smaller craters, including Montgolfier P, Montgolfier J, and Woltjer. Montgolfier P and an unnamed crater to its northeast have linear fractures in their floors. Montgolfier's interior floor is pitted and lacks a central peak.

Prior to formal naming by the International Astronomical Union in 1970, the formation was designated as Crater 78. The IAU named Montgolfier after the French inventors Jacques-Étienne and Joseph-Michael Montgolfier.

Chronology & Exploration

1. 1970 IAU Name Adoption

   The International Astronomical Union formally names Montgolfier, which had previously been designated as Crater 78.

Scientific Sources & References

• IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature — Official coordinates, dimensions, and naming origin
• Wikipedia: Montgolfier (crater) — Physical description, satellite features, and historical designation

Name Origin

Jacques-Étienne; French inventor (1745-1799); Joseph-Michael; French inventor (1740-1810).