Oblique view facing south from Apollo 11. Crookes is right of center, and Crookes D is left of center. Note the prominent chain of secondary craters in the central foreground. Mohorovičić is in the background.Apollo 8 image of the interior
The rim of this crater has a relatively high albedo compared to most such formations on the Moon, and it lies at the center of a ray system. This ejecta forms a nearly continuous blanket out to at least one crater diameter before forming extended rays and a multitude of wispy markings across the surface. The ray system continues for several hundred kilometers, including extending across a substantial portion of the Korolev basin. Due to these prominent rays, Crookes is mapped as part of the Copernican System.[1]
As would be expected for a relatively young crater, Crookes has a sharp-edged rim that has not been significantly eroded. The inner walls are relatively wide, and have slumped inward along the edges. Offset slightly to the east of the midpoint of the crater is a small central peak on the interior floor.
^Wilhelms, Don E.; With Sections By Mccauley, John F.; Trask, Newell J. (1987), The geologic history of the Moon, USGS Professional Paper: 1348. Plate 11: Copernican System, doi:10.3133/pp1348
Andersson, L. E.; Whitaker, E. A. (1982). NASA Catalogue of Lunar Nomenclature. NASA RP-1097.
Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (1971). "Report on Lunar Nomenclature by the Working Group of Commission 17 of the IAU". Space Science Reviews. 12 (2): 136–186. Bibcode:1971SSRv...12..136M. doi:10.1007/BF00171763. S2CID122125855.
