Impact crater

Schickard

A broad walled plain in the southwestern lunar highlands. Different parts of its floor have noticeably different surface brightness.

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Schickard and surrounding lunar terrain in the LROC Wide Angle Camera mosaic
Schickard · North up, east right. Open image ↗
NASA / GSFC / Arizona State University · LROC WAC mosaic via USGS. Regional map crop; lighting is fixed and does not follow the selected date.
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Lunar north up, with geocentric libration. Full atlas mode shows the entire facing surface; switch to Selected phase for today’s illumination. Choose a different date in the atlas.

How to observe Schickard

Use moderate magnification to keep the whole outline visible. Compare the floor under low and high illumination.

Finding the region

Look at 44.38° S, 55.11° W on the lunar disc. The chart marker identifies the catalogue centre. Start with a wide field and use the nearby formations below as landmarks.

Equipment & conditions

Start at low magnification to identify the rim. Move to a moderate power when the air is steady; low sunlight usually makes walls and floor relief easier to distinguish. A bright ray system can be more conspicuous near full Moon.

Lighting

For surface relief, try a time when the Sun is low over this region. To compare surface brightness and any bright rays, return under higher illumination. The atlas calculates the solar elevation at the formation’s centre for any selected date.

View Schickard in the atlas

IAU / USGS Gazetteer

Official feature record

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Approved name
Schickard
Feature classification
Crater, craters
Catalogue diameter
212.18 km
Centre latitude
44.38° S
Centre longitude
55.11° W
Name origin (Gazetteer)
Wilhelm; German astronomer, mathematician (1592-1635).

Coordinates are selenographic, with east-positive longitude. Dimensions are the Gazetteer’s catalogue values; for extended formations they do not represent a circular crater diameter. Data snapshot: 2026-09-16. Observing guidance above is separate from the official record.

Nearby formations

The four closest catalogue entries, measured from their centres.

LROC photograph of SchillerImpact crater

Schiller

A markedly elongated crater in the southwestern highlands. Its shape stands out among the more rounded neighbouring formations.

LROC photograph of BaillyImpact crater

Bailly

A vast, battered formation near the southwestern limb. Foreshortening makes the interior much harder to inspect than the catalogue size might suggest.

LROC photograph of Mare HumorumSea / bay

Mare Humorum

The Sea of Moisture is a rounded dark plain in the southwestern near side. Gassendi marks its northern edge.

LROC photograph of ClaviusImpact crater

Clavius

A large southern crater containing a distinctive curved sequence of smaller craters. The largest interior craters are visible well before the smaller craterlets.