The crater is named after German mathematician and astronomer Johann Franz Encke.[1]
The rim of Encke is low and somewhat polygonal in shape. The tiny craterlet Encke N lies across the western rim. The floor is somewhat uneven, and is covered in ray material from the nearby Kepler. The high albedo of this ejecta makes Encke a bright feature when the Sun is at a high elevation over the lunar surface.
Satellite craters
By convention these features are identified on lunar maps by placing the letter on the side of the crater midpoint that is closest to Encke.
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.