Bettinus (crater)

Bettinus is a lunar impact crater located near the southwest limb.^[2] Due to its location, the crater has a distinctly oval shape because of foreshortening.^[3] To the south of the rim is the similar-sized crater Kircher,^[4]: 136 and to the northwest is the slightly smaller Zucchius.^[5] From the west to the southwest, closer to the limb, is the giant formation Bailly. Bettinus lies due south of the Schiller-Zucchius Basin.

The rim of Bettinus is somewhat worn, with a terraced inner wall that is wider to the northwest. The interior floor is relatively flat, with a central rise that is offset to the west of the midpoint.^{[6][4]: 125} The spectra of the central peak fits a noritic anorthosite mineralogy, which originated from a depth of 7.1 to 11.1 km.^[7] There is a small crater along the eastern rim.

This crater is named after the Italian mathematician and astronomer Mario Bettinus (1582-1657).^[8] The name was incorporated into lunar nomenclature by Italian astronomer Giovanni Riccioli in 1651, who labelled it "Bettinus Soc. I".^[9] Its modern designation was formally adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 1935.^[1]