thumb|right|300px|Necho's bright rays. [[Apollo 8 view facing east.]]thumb|right|240px|Cracks form in the impact melt sheet on the floor of Necho Crater, the southeast rim. Imaged by NASA's [[Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.]]thumb|right|240px|Oblique [[Apollo 10 image]]thumb|right|240px|Highly oblique view also from Apollo 10

Necho is a lunar impact crater on the far side of the Moon, and therefore cannot be seen directly from the Earth. It lies to the northeast of the larger crater Langemak, about a crater diameter to the south-southwest of Bečvář and further east is Love.

Description

The most distinctive aspect of this crater is the prominent ray system that surrounds the outer rim. This higher-albedo skirt of ejecta extends in a nearly continuous fashion out for several crater diameters, but is more extensive to the north and northeast than elsewhere. Beyond this continuous skirt, occasional rays and wisps of light material extend outwards for many more crater diameters. Due to its prominent rays and generally very fresh appearance, Necho is mapped as part of the Copernican System. It was not formally named until 1976 by the IAU.

Necho lies at the south edge of an unnamed, highly subdued, 200 km diameter crater which was originally discovered during the Apollo 16 mission and reported by Farouk El-Baz. The name Necho was proposed for the unnamed crater, but the name was eventually adopted for this smaller crater.

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 Necho.

{| class="wikitable"

!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Necho

!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Latitude

!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Longitude

!width="25%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Diameter

|-

| Align="center"|M

| Align="center"|6.0° S

| Align="center"|123.1° E

| Align="center"|12 km

|-

| Align="center"|P

| Align="center"|6.8° S

| Align="center"|122.0° E

| Align="center"|75 km

|-

| Align="center"|R

| Align="center"|5.6° S

| Align="center"|122.0° E

| Align="center"|18 km

|-

| Align="center"|V

| Align="center"|4.3° S

| Align="center"|120.6° E

| Align="center"|16 km

|}

References

</references>

Sources

  • Necho at The Moon Wiki
  • high-resolution photo of the interior from Apollo 14 (AS14-72-9975) at L&PI
  • LTO-83B4 Necho — L&PI topographic map.
  • 83B4S1(50) Necho Crater — L&PI Lunar Topophotomap Series, Scale: 1:50,000.
  • Apollo 17 panoramic camera images with Necho near center: AS17-P-2461, AS17-P-2463, AS17-P-2466, AS17-P-2468
  • LRO articles:
  • A Molten Flood
  • Necho's Terraces
  • Necho's Jumbled Floor
  • Impact Melt at Necho Crater
  • Necho Crater in 2009