Kao is a small
lunarimpact crater that is located near the eastern limb of the
Moon. It lies near the southern edge of the
Mare Smythii, a
lunar mare that continues onto the
far side of the surface. This crater lies to the east-southeast of the crater
Widmannstätten. Less than a crater diameter to the north-northeast is the small crater
Tucker.
This crater forms part of a merged pair with
Helmert to the south. There is a gap in the sides of the crater where they are joined together, and they share a common floor that has been resurfaced by
lava. The outer rim of this crater now forms little more than a shallow ring in the surface, with the rim lowest along the northern side. It is unmarked by impacts of significance. However, there is a small crater along the southeastern edge where the rim joins that of Helmert.
The crater's name was approved by the
IAU in 1982.[2] It is named for astronomer
Kao Ping-tse.
Menzel, D. H.; Minnaert, M.; Levin, B.; Dollfus, A.; Bell, B. (1971). "Report on Lunar Nomenclature by the Working Group of Commission 17 of the IAU". Space Science Reviews. 12 (2): 136–186.
Bibcode:
1971SSRv...12..136M.
doi:
10.1007/BF00171763.
S2CID122125855.