It occupies the great focus of disruption, whence it sends out
great streaks thousands of miles in length; and it gives the most
unmistakable evidence of the terribly eruptive nature of those forces
that once shattered the Moon's solidified shell in this portion of the
lunar surface.
Situated in the southern latitude of 43 deg. by an eastern longitude of 12 deg.,
_Tycho's_ crater, somewhat elliptical in shape, is 54 miles in diameter
and upwards of 16,000 feet in depth. Its lofty ramparts are buttressed
by other mountains, Mont Blancs in size, all grouped around it, and all
streaked with the great divergent fissures that radiate from it as a
centre.
Of what this incomparable mountain really is, with all these lines of
projections converging towards it and with all these prominent points
of relief protruding within its crater, photography has, so far, been
able to give us only a very unsatisfactory idea. The reason too is very
simple: it is only at Full Moon that _Tycho_ reveals himself in all his
splendor. The shadows therefore vanishing, the perspective
foreshortenings disappear and the views become little better than a dead
blank. This is the more to be regretted as this wonderful region is well
worthy of being represented with the greatest possible photographic
accuracy.
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