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7/03/2026

How to Find Crater Carroll from Artemis II

 


In April  as the Artemis II crew did their Lunar Flyby, the identified and named a rather newly formed crater after Commander Reid Wiseman's late wife, Carroll Taylor Wiseman, and named it Crater Carroll. 

The name has been submitted to the International Astronomical Union, the entity that is responsible for naming planetary features.  This crater can be visually seen from Earth in a backyard telescope if you know where and when to look. 

I used the Moon Globe HD app to show how to do this and you can go to this url to see NASA's website on this with 3 maps to show its location near the western limb of the Moon's near side. 

https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/5646/

From the website: "Carroll is located at 18.633°N, 86.533°W. Although small (6 kilometers or 4 miles wide), it is relatively young and surrounded by bright ejecta that make it easier to find. It is in sunlight from Full Moon through the thin waning crescent just before New Moon, but it may be best seen in the early morning hours beginning at the Third Quarter phase, to take advantage of diurnal libration. At Third Quarter, the Sun is high over Carroll's neighborhood, so finding it relies on albedo features rather than shadows. Crater hop starting at Grimaldi, a prominent dark patch near the equator and just off the western edge of Oceanus Procellarum, and move north through Riccioli, Hedin, and Glushko, all of which have easily recognizeable features." 

I hope this allows you to make a personal connnection to this solemn moment of last April's Artemis II mission.  Clear skies to you!