Mare Desiderii

Mare Desiderii
Coordinates	33°42′S 163°30′E / 33.7°S 163.5°E / -33.7; 163.5Coordinates: 33°42′S 163°30′E / 33.7°S 163.5°E / -33.7; 163.5
Eponym	Sea of Dreams

Mare Desiderii ("Sea of Dreams") was an area of the Moon named after Luna 3 returned the first pictures of the far side. This name is derived from the Russian Море Мечты, Mechta ("Dream") being the original name for the Luna 1 spacecraft.

This feature was later found to be composed of a smaller mare, Mare Ingenii (Sea of Ingenuity), and other dark craters. Today the IAU does not recognise the name Mare Desiderii.

References

Stooke, Philip J. (2007). The International Atlas of Lunar Exploration. Cambridge University Press. p. 17. ISBN 978-0-521-81930-5.
US Geological Survey. Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. http://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/

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