Mare Serenitatis: Difference between revisions

{{short description|Lunar mare}}

|image = Mare Serenitatis - Clementine.jpg

|diameter = {{convert|674|km|mi|abbr=on}}<ref name=USGS>{{gpn|3686}}</ref><ref name="Atlas">{{cite web

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020420184150/http://lunar.arc.nasa.gov/science/atlas/mare/mserenitatis.htm

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=2002-04-20

|access-date=2009-07-04}}</ref>

'''Mare Serenitatis''' {{IPAc-en|s|ᵻ|,|r|ɛ|n|ᵻ|'|t|ei|t|ᵻ|s}} (Latin ''serēnitātis'', the "'''Sea of Serenity'''") is a [[lunar mare]] located to the east of [[Mare Imbrium]] on the [[Moon]]. Its diameter is {{convert|674|km|mi|abbr=on}}.<ref name=USGS/>

[[File:Mare Serenitatis Si Aldo Ferruggia.jpg|left|thumb|299x299px|Mare Serenitatis in selenochromatic Image (Si) with some landmarks (yellow). More infos here : <nowiki>https://www.gawh.it/main/selenocromatica</nowiki>]]

Mare Serenitatis is located within the Serenitatis basin, which is of the [[Nectarian]] [[epoch (geology)|epoch]].<ref>[https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/pp1348 The geologic history of the Moon]. [[USGS]] Professional Paper 1348. By [[Don Wilhelms|Don E. Wilhelms]], John F. McCauley, and Newell J. Trask. U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington: 1987. Table 9-3.</ref> The material surrounding the mare is of the [[Lower Imbrian]] epoch, while the mare material is of the [[Upper Imbrian]] epoch. The mare [[basalt]] covers a majority of the basin and overflows into [[Lacus Somniorum]] to the northeast. The most noticeable feature is the crater [[Posidonius (crater)|Posidonius]] on the northeast rim of the mare.<ref name="ccastronomy">{{cite web|title=Lunar Map |publisher=[http://www.ccastronomy.org/ Central Coast Astronomical Society] |url=http://www.ccastronomy.org/photo_tour_Moon_Map.jpg |access-date=2009-07-04 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070128013417/http://www.ccastronomy.org/photo_tour_Moon_Map.jpg |archive-date=January 28, 2007 }}</ref> The ring feature to the west of the mare is indistinct, except for [[Montes Haemus]]. Mare Serenitatis connects with [[Mare Tranquillitatis]] to the southeast and borders [[Mare Vaporum]] to the southwest. Mare Serenitatis is an example of a [[mass concentration (astronomy)|mascon]], an anomalous gravitational region on the Moon.

A [[mass concentration (astronomy)|mass concentration]] (mascon), or gravitational high, was identified in the center of Mare Serenitatis from Doppler tracking of the five [[Lunar Orbiter program|Lunar Orbiter]] spacecraft in 1968.<ref>{{cite journal | doi = 10.1126/science.161.3842.680 | title = Mascons: Lunar Mass Concentrations | year = 1968 | author = P. M. Muller, W. L. Sjogren | journal = Science | volume = 161 | issue = 3842 | pages = 680–684 | pmid=17801458| bibcode = 1968Sci...161..680M | s2cid = 40110502 }}</ref> The mascon was confirmed and mapped at higher resolution with later orbiters such as [[Lunar Prospector]] and [[Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory|GRAIL]].

Like most of the other maria on the Moon, Mare Serenitatis was named by [[Giovanni Riccioli]], whose 1651 nomenclature system has become standardized.<ref>Ewen A. Whitaker, ''Mapping and Naming the Moon'' (Cambridge University Press, 1999), p.61.</ref> Previously, [[William Gilbert (astronomer)|William Gilbert]] had citeditas within the Regio Magna Occidentalis ("Large Western Region") in his map of ''c''.1600.<ref>Ewen A. Whitaker, ''Mapping and Naming the Moon'' (Cambridge University Press, 1999), p.15</ref> [[Pierre Gassendi]] had included it as part of the 'Homuncio' ('little man'), referring to a small humanoid figure that he could see among the maria; Gassendi also referred to it as 'Thersite' after [[Thersites]], the ugliest warrior in the [[Trojan War]].<ref>Ewen A. Whitaker, ''Mapping and Naming the Moon'' (Cambridge University Press, 1999), p.33.</ref> [[Michael van Langren]] had labelled it the Mare Eugenianum ("Eugenia's Sea") in his 1645 map,<ref>Ewen A. Whitaker, ''Mapping and Naming the Moon'' (Cambridge University Press, 1999), p.41, 198.</ref> in honour of [[Isabella Clara Eugenia]], queen of the [[Spanish Netherlands]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://galileo.rice.edu/Catalog/NewFiles/langren.html|title = The Galileo Project}}</ref> And [[Johannes Hevelius]] included it within Pontus Euxinus (after the classical name for the [[Black Sea]]) in his 1647 map.

Both [[Luna 21]] and [[Apollo 17]] landed near the eastern border of Mare Serenitatis, in the area of the [[Montes Taurus]] range. Apollo 17 landed specifically in the [[Taurus-Littrow]] valley, and Luna 21 landed in [[Le Monnier (crater)|Le Monnier]] crater. [[SpaceIL|SpaceIL's]] ''[[Beresheet]]'' lunar lander was planned to land in Mare Serenitatis, but crashed into the surface on 11 April 2019. Its final resting place was about 33°N, 19°E, near to the centre of the [[Lunar mare|mare]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/11/science/israel-moon-landing-beresheet.html |title=Israel's Beresheet Spacecraft Moon Landing Attempt Appears to End in Crash |date=11 April 2019 |first=Kenneth |last=Chang |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=11 April 2019}}</ref>

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Image:Mare Serenetatis AS17-M-0940-0947-0954.jpg|These are three views of Mare Serenitatis, taken by the mapping camera of the [[Apollo 17]] mission in 1972, facing north-northeast from an average altitude of 107&nbsp;km. At the right is the east margin of Mare Serenitatis, with the 95&nbsp;km diameter crater [[Posidonius (crater)|Posidonius]] at the central horizon, the basalt-flooded [[Le Monnier (crater)|Le Monnier]] crater to the south, the mare ridge (or [[wrinkle ridge]]) [[Dorsa Aldrovandi]] at center, [[Littrow (crater)|Littrow]] crater at the right, and the landing site of Apollo 17 in the lower right corner in the [[Taurus–Littrow]] valley. In the center is the relatively small crater [[Bessel (crater)|Bessel]] (16&nbsp;km), and two prominent rays probably from the [[Tycho (lunar crater)|Tycho]] impact far to the south. At the left is the western margin of the mare, with the [[Montes Caucasus|Caucasus Mountains]] at the central horizon, the [[Montes Apenninus|Apennine Mountains]] at left, and the [[Sulpicius Gallus (crater)|Sulpicius Gallus Rilles]] at the lower right. The Sun elevation drops from 24 degrees at right to 5 degrees at left as the [[Apollo Command/Service Module|Command Module]] ''America'' orbited the Moon.

*Mare Serenitatis is mentioned in [[Arthur C. Clarke]]'s 1951 short story "[[The Sentinel (short story)|The Sentinel]]".

*Mare Serentitatis borders the Authority Moon colony in [[Robert Heinlein]]'s 1966 novel ''[[The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress]]''.

*The most southern part of Mare Serenitatis is depicted on the cover of the album ''Apollo - Atmospheres and Soundtracks'' by Brian Eno, Roger Eno, and Daniel Lanois (1982). The photograph on the cover is AS17-150-23069, made during the mission of [[Apollo 17]] in December 1972.

*''Mare Serenitatis'' is the name of a Frigate-type spaceship playable in ''Infinite Lagrange'', a game developed and published by [[NetEase|NetEase Games]].

*In the animation ''[[Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Crystal]]'', Mare Serenitatis is the location of Silver Millennium and the original Moon Castle.

==See also==

*[[Volcanism on the Moon]]

{{Commons category}}

*[https://the-moon.us/wiki/Mare_Serenitatis Mare Serenitatis at The Moon Wiki]

* {{cite web| last = Wood | first = Chuck | date = November 27, 2006 | url = http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070217 | title = Make Your Own Atlas | publisher = Lunar Photo of the Day |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614233616/http://www.lpod.org/?m=20070217|archive-date=June 14, 2011}}

* {{cite web| last = Wood | first = Chuck | date = May 15, 2008 | url = https://the-moon.us/wiki/LPOD_June_29%2C_2008 | title = Bright Moon | publisher = Lunar Photo of the Day }}

[[Category:Nectarian|Serenitatis]]

[[Category:Imbrian|Serenitatis]]