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Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / Re: Why Are Craters MOSTLY Round ?
« Last post by evan_au on Today at 02:23:35 »Some craters are elliptical in shape, but they are only noticeably elliptical if the impact angle is < 15 degrees. The majority impact at an angle of 16-90 degrees.
- The biggest elliptical crater on the Moon is the south pole-Aitken basin, which is not readily visible from Earth.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Pole%E2%80%93Aitken_basin
- There is a chain of small elliptical craters on the Moon, perhaps created by an asteroid which was tidally disrupted when approaching the Moon(?)
https://www.planetary.org/space-images/moon-elliptical-crater-chain-lroc
Outside the central impact crater, some asteroid impacts are star-shaped, where rocks were blasted out in radial lines away from the impact site, leaving a star-shaped pattern, like the Tycho crater on the Moon.

Tycho_Crater_Moon.jpg (317.95 kB . 1060x878 - viewed 2 times)
- The biggest elliptical crater on the Moon is the south pole-Aitken basin, which is not readily visible from Earth.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Pole%E2%80%93Aitken_basin
- There is a chain of small elliptical craters on the Moon, perhaps created by an asteroid which was tidally disrupted when approaching the Moon(?)
https://www.planetary.org/space-images/moon-elliptical-crater-chain-lroc
Outside the central impact crater, some asteroid impacts are star-shaped, where rocks were blasted out in radial lines away from the impact site, leaving a star-shaped pattern, like the Tycho crater on the Moon.
