An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

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فرهنگ ریشه‌شناختی اخترشناسی-اخترفیزیک

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lunar mare
  "دریای ِ ماه"  
"daryâ-ye mâh" (#)
Fr.: mer lunaire  

An area on the surface of the → Moon that appears darker and smoother than its surroundings.
Once thought to be seas, lunar maria are now known to be basaltic basins created by volcanic → lava floods; plural maria.

See also: → lunar; L. mare “sea,” plural form maria, because
Galileo thought the dark featureless areas on the Moon were → seas.