Coulomb-Sarton Basin

The Coulomb-Sarton Basin is a Pre-Nectarian impact basin on the far side of the moon.[2] It is named after the crater Coulomb northeast of the center of the basin and the smaller crater Sarton just south of the center. The basin is not obvious on the lunar surface. There are only small fragments of inner rings and a rim, and the most indicative topographic feature is a smooth, low plain at the center.

Coulomb-Sarton Basin
Oblique Lunar Orbiter 5 image, with the approximate extent of the basin highlighted in red
Coordinates52.0°N 123.0°W / 52.0; -123.0
Diameter530 km[1]
EponymCoulomb and Sarton craters

At the center is a mass concentration (mascon), or gravitational high. The mascon was first identified by Doppler tracking of the Lunar Prospector spacecraft.[3]

Other craters within the basin include Weber and Kramers. At the approximate margin of the basin are Dyson, Ellison, Stefan, Wegener, Wood, Landau, and Gullstrand. The large crater Birkhoff is to the northwest.

  • Topographic map
  • Gravity map based on GRAIL

References
  1. The geologic history of the Moon, 1987, Wilhelms, Don E.; with sections by McCauley, John F.; Trask, Newell J. USGS Professional Paper: 1348. (online)
  2. "Impact Basin Database". Archived from the original on 2014-08-07. Retrieved 2015-12-05.
  3. A. S. Konopliv; A. B. Binder; L. L. Hood; A. B. Kucinskas; W. L. Sjogren; J. G. Williams (1998). "Improved Gravity Field of the Moon from Lunar Prospector". Science. 281 (5382): 1476–1480. doi:10.1126/science.281.5382.1476. PMID 9727968.
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