The dark, smooth surface areas of the Moon are known as

A. craters.

B. rilles.

C. maria.

D. highlands.

The dark, smooth surface areas of the Moon are known as C. maria. Although they are a type of craters, they are not called that way, but rather their name is maria, because scientists who first researched this areas thought they were seas or oceans. In Latin, the word for sea is mare, and plural is maria, which is why these areas are also called that way because they resemble these waters.