Diophantus (crater)


Diophantus is a lunar impact crater that lies in the southwestern part of the Mare Imbrium. It was named after ancient Greek mathematician Diophantus. It forms a pair with the larger crater Delisle to the north. Diophantus has a wide inner wall and a low central rise. To the north of Diophantus is the sinuous rille designated Rima Diophantus, named after the crater. Diophantus C lies near the exterior of the southwest wall.

Rima Diophantus

This cleft follows a generally east–west path across the Mare Imbrium. It is centered at selenographic coordinates 31.0° N, 32.0° W, and has a maximum diameter of 150 km.

Small Craters

Several tiny craters north of Diophantus have been assigned names by the IAU. These are listed in the table below.
CraterCoordinatesDiameterName source
Isabel1 kmSpanish feminine name
Louise0.8 kmFrench feminine name
Samir2 kmArabic masculine name
Walter11 kmGerman masculine name

The crater Samir has bright rays that extend for over 70 km.

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 Diophantus.
DiophantusLatitudeLongitudeDiameter
B29.1° N32.5° W6 km
C27.3° N34.7° W5 km
D26.9° N36.3° W4 km

The following craters have been renamed by the IAU.