PLATO
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	Common Name: PLATO Other Names: RA: 23: 30.09 Dec -2: 37.69 Constellation: Pisces Distance: 363 860 km Magnitude: -12.4 Telescope: Meade LX200 14" Camera: Canon 300D Eyepiece Projection Filters: nil Exposure: 0.5 seconds ISO: 100 Date: 29 November 2006 Time: 9:42pm AEST Where: Tenby Observatory, Coonabarabran Lat: 31 16 35.05 S, Long 149 11 33.99 E, Elevation 547 metres NOTES: Plato is a crater 109 km across on the western side of Montes Alpes, on the edge of the Sea of Imbrium. Note the shadows on the left rim which portray the high and rugged terrain of the rim of the crater. It is 2km high. The crater had been filled with lava some 3 billion years ago. The crater looks elongated but this is just the effect of the curvature of the moon, it is actuallu round. Vallis Alpes can be seen above an to the left and is a strange formation. It is 10km wide and bisects the Montes Alpes range and Mare Imbrium. The valley floor is a flat, lava-flooded surface that is bisected by a slender, cleft-like rille. The sides of the valley rise from the floor to the surrounding highland terrain. The southern face of the valley is straighter than the northern side. Most likely this valley is a graben that was subsequently flooded with magma. For a fantastic image of the valley got to http://www.lpod.org/coppermine/displayimage.php?album=topn&cat=0&pos=13 To the south is Mons Pico, a high mountain as can be deduced from the length of its shadow. In fact it is 2.4km high. The mountain is 15km wide and 25 km long. It is part of the remains of the Mare Imbrium rim alng with Montes Teneriffe. The black marks are due to dust and dirt on the optics of the camera.