thumb|right|240px|Earth-based view of Clavius<BR>(North up)
thumb|right|240px|[[Lunar Orbiter 4 view of Clavius]]
Clavius is one of the largest crater formations on the Moon and the second largest crater on the visible near side (very close in size to Deslandres). T. W. Webb described it as "one of the grandest cavities in the Moon, though ill-placed for observation." It is "tolerably circular" and "encompassed by a wall damaged by successive explosions". The water could be trapped into tiny beadlike structures in the soil that form out of the high heat created by micrometeorite impacts. The water might also be sheltered between lunar soil grains. Another possibility is from very small asteroid strikes, such as a rubble pile from a much more massive "parent" asteroid collision. Pulled apart in its descent to the lunar surface similar to Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9, and hitting the surface in a modest dispersal area with a small mass at low, oblique impact angle and bouncing could allow some water to remain in the lithic matrix. The carbonaceous chondrite class is often water-rich, and the CI sub group are as much as 22% water.
Satellite craters
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Clavius.
{| class="wikitable"
!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Clavius
!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Latitude
!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Longitude
!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Diameter
|-
|align="center"|C
|align="center"|57.7° S
|align="center"|14.2° W
|align="center"|21 km
|-
|align="center"|D
|align="center"|58.8° S
|align="center"|12.4° W
|align="center"|28 km
|-
|align="center"|E
|align="center"|51.5° S
|align="center"|12.6° W
|align="center"|16 km
|-
|align="center"|F
|align="center"|55.4° S
|align="center"|21.9° W
|align="center"|7 km
|-
|align="center"|G
|align="center"|52.0° S
|align="center"|13.9° W
|align="center"|17 km
|-
|align="center"|H
|align="center"|51.9° S
|align="center"|15.8° W
|align="center"|34 km
|-
|align="center"|J
|align="center"|58.1° S
|align="center"|18.1° W
|align="center"|12 km
|-
|align="center"|K
|align="center"|60.4° S
|align="center"|19.8° W
|align="center"|20 km
|-
|align="center"|L
|align="center"|58.7° S
|align="center"|21.2° W
|align="center"|24 km
|-
|align="center"|M
|align="center"|54.8° S
|align="center"|11.9° W
|align="center"|44 km
|-
|align="center"|N
|align="center"|57.5° S
|align="center"|16.5° W
|align="center"|13 km
|-
|align="center"|O
|align="center"|56.8° S
|align="center"|16.4° W
|align="center"|4 km
|-
|align="center"|P
|align="center"|57.0° S
|align="center"|7.7° W
|align="center"|10 km
|-
|align="center"|R
|align="center"|53.1° S
|align="center"|15.4° W
|align="center"|7 km
|-
|align="center"|T
|align="center"|60.4° S
|align="center"|14.9° W
|align="center"|9 km
|-
|align="center"|W
|align="center"|55.8° S
|align="center"|16.0° W
|align="center"|6 km
|-
|align="center"|X
|align="center"|60.0° S
|align="center"|17.6° W
|align="center"|7 km
|-
|align="center"|Y
|align="center"|57.8° S
|align="center"|16.0° W
|align="center"|7 km
|}
In popular culture
- Clavius Base, the site of an American lunar administrative facility in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Time-travel facility located under Clavius in the 2015 Madeira Desouza novel entitled Baja Clavius: Moon Men Deep Inside
- The location of the fictional Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino in the Arctic Monkeys song "Four Out of Five"
References
</references>
Sources
External links
- Video by Seán Doran of sunset on Clavius, based on LRO data (see album for more)