The Moon, named after Portugal

5 named features. The International Astronomical Union records why each name was chosen, and those reasons are printed below exactly as they were approved.

FEATURES · 5

NAME	TYPE	SIZE	WHY THAT NAME
Vasco da Gama	crater	93.5 km	Portuguese navigator, explorer (c. 1460-1524).
Nonius	crater	70.6 km	Pedro Nuñez Salaciense; Portuguese mathematician (1502-1578).
Magelhaens	crater	37.2 km	Fernao De (Ferdinand Magellan); Portuguese explorer (1480-1521).
Acosta	crater	13.1 km	Cristobal; Portuguese doctor, natural historian (1515-1580).
Rimae Vasco da Gama	rille	10.4 km	Named from nearby crater.

Names and their origins come from the IAU Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature (USGS Astrogeology), retrieved 2026-08-14.
All named features ｜ KUON THE MOON map ｜ About the map ｜ Every landing site on the Moon

DATA: IAU / USGS Astrogeology · NASA LRO LOLA