Mare Imbrium

Mare Imbrium
A map showing the location of Mare Imbrium
Coordinates32°48′N 15°36′W / 32.8°N 15.6°W / 32.8; -15.6
Diameter1,146 km (712 mi)[1]
EponymSea of Showers or Sea of Rains
LRO mosaic of Mare Imbrium
Detail map of Imbrium's features
Mare Imbrium from Earth, imaged with an 8" untracked Dobsonian. The left panel emphasizes wrinkle ridges, craters, and mountain rings with the terminator closer. The right panel highlights albedo patterns and ray markings under a higher sun.
Detail of basaltic lava flow fronts within Mare Imbrium, located north of Euler crater. (Mosaic of Apollo 17 images.)

Mare Imbrium /ˈɪmbriəm/ (Latin imbrium, the "Sea of Showers" or "Sea of Rains") is a vast lava plain within the Imbrium Basin on the Moon and is one of the larger craters in the Solar System. The Imbrium Basin formed from the collision of a proto-planet during the Late Heavy Bombardment. Basaltic lava later flooded the giant crater to form the flat volcanic plain seen today. The basin's age has been estimated using uranium–lead dating methods to approximately 3.9 billion years ago, and the diameter of the impactor has been estimated to be 250 ± 25 km.[2] The Moon's maria (plural of mare) have fewer features than other areas of the Moon because molten lava pooled in the craters and formed a relatively smooth surface. Mare Imbrium is not as flat as it would have originally been when it first formed as a result of later events that have altered its surface.

  1. ^ "Mare Imbrium". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  2. ^ P. H. Schultz & D.A. Crawford, Origin and implications of non-radial Imbrium Sculpture on the Moon, Nature 535, 391–394 (2016)