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A portion of the rim of Degas crater is visible towards the top of this image. The hummocky texture of the interior crater wall is due to the slumping and downslope movement of material soon after the crater formed.
Date acquired: April 22, 2013
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 8944037
Image ID: 3929664
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 36.35° N
Center Longitude: 232.6° E
Resolution: 24 meters/pixel
Scale: The diagonal of this image is approximately 36 km (22 mi.) across.
Incidence Angle: 43.6°
Emission Angle: 12.7°
Phase Angle: 56.3°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
At the center of today's image is a "red spot," an informal designation used by the MESSENGER team to refer to an area with overall high reflectance and higher than average reflectance at the longer-wavelength (red) end of the spectrum. Red spots are thought to be sites of explosive (pyroclastic) volcanic eruptions. Such deposits were analyzed in a 2011 paper. A close-up of the crater at the center of the red spot was presented in a previous Gallery image. The crater neat the left edge of the image with bright floor deposits (hollows) is Theophanes.
Date acquired: December 14, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 232328601, 232328621, 232328605
Image ID: 1134128, 1134133, 1134129
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filters: 9, 7, 6 (996, 748, 433 nanometers) in red, green, and blue
Center Latitude: -3.73°
Center Longitude: 223.8° E
Resolution: 725 meters/pixel
Scale: The scene is about 750 km (465 mi.) wide.
Incidence Angle: 44.7°
Emission Angle: 0.3°
Phase Angle: 44.8°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Today's image is centered on a large unnamed crater to the northeast of Dali. The crater has been flooded with smooth plains that have a relatively high reflectance and reddish color compared to the average surface of Mercury. The surrounding area, by contrast, has low reflectance and blue color.
Date acquired: July 09, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 218671363, 218671371, 218671365
Image ID: 480913, 480918, 480914
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filters: 9, 7, 6 (996, 748, 433 nanometers) in red, green, and blue
Center Latitude: 47.75°
Center Longitude: 123.5° E
Resolution: 908 meters/pixel
Scale: The edges of the image are about 220 km (136 mi.) long.
Incidence Angle: 51.3°
Emission Angle: 0.4°
Phase Angle: 50.9°
The image was binned on the spacecraft from its original 1024 x 1024 pixel size to 256 square in order to reduce the volume of data that needed to be stored on the recorder and transmitted to Earth.
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Studies of the illumination conditions near the north and south poles of Mercury are of interest because they can be used to determine locations of permanent shadow, extremely cold places where ice deposits lurk. However, the illumination maps also reveal the locations that receive the maximum duration of sunlight during a Mercury solar day. A "peak of eternal light" that is illuminated continuously for an entire solar day would be a favorable target for a lander, because solar power would be available all the time. So far, no such peak of eternal light has been identified at Mercury's south pole. The spot that get the most illumination (about 82%), is located at 89° S, 50.7° E. This place is indicated by the arrow in today's image.
This image was acquired as part of MDIS's campaign to monitor the south polar region of Mercury. By imaging the polar region approximately every four MESSENGER orbits as illumination conditions change, features that were in shadow on earlier orbits can be discerned and any permanently shadowed areas can be identified after repeated imaging over one solar day. During MESSENGER's one-year primary mission, MDIS's WAC was used to monitor the south polar region for the first Mercury solar day (176 Earth days), and MDIS's NAC made repeated images of the south polar region during the second Mercury solar day.
Date acquired: December 24, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 233190744
Image ID: 1175166
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: -88.17°
Center Longitude: 35.40° E
Resolution: 298 meters/pixel
Scale: The large crater is Chao Meng-Fu, about 129 km (80 mi.) in diameter.
Incidence Angle: 91.1°
Emission Angle: 7.1°
Phase Angle: 95.6°
Projection: Polar stereographic projection centered at 90° S, with
0° toward the top and 180° toward the bottom.
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
The bright, rayed crater in this image is one of the most prominent on Mercury. Named Snorri, after an Icelandic writer and poet, the crater was discovered in images returned by the Mariner 10 spacecraft. A color view of Snorri and surroundings was presented in a previous Gallery image (PIA14233).
Date acquired: October 14, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 227045180
Image ID: 882221
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: -9.42°
Center Longitude: 277.1° E
Resolution: 195 meters/pixel
Scale: Snorri is about 21 km (13 mi.) in diameter.
Incidence Angle: 22.4°
Emission Angle: 51.0°
Phase Angle: 73.4°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Today's image features a perspective view of the Alver crater, recently named for Estonian poet Betti Alver (1906-1989). Alver's husband was imprisoned and died in Siberia after World War II, leading Alver to stop writing poetry for many years in protest of Soviet rule. She resumed writing poetry in the 1960s, composing the notable 1966 collection Tähetund or "Starry Hour."
To create this image, a portion of the MDIS monochrome basemap was draped over a digital elevation model. The topography has been exaggerated by 5 times to accentuate the crater rim and central peak ring. The view is looking towards the southeast. Alver is a complex crater in the southern hemisphere of Mercury. This perspective view highlights the smooth nature of the basin floor relative to the ejecta blanket and surrounding terrain.
Instrument: Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: -67.0°
Center Longitude: 77.9° E
Basemap Resolution: approximately 250 meters/pixel
Digital Elevation Model: Produced by MESSENGER Participating Scientist Bob Gaskell based on MDIS images
Vertical Exaggeration: 5 times actual
Scale: Alver crater is 151.5 km (94.1 miles) across
Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Repeat imaging of Mercury's south pole has revealed that a number of craters in the south contain permanently shadowed regions. Because Mercury has only a very small axial tilt, the topography of crater rims, as accentuated in the inset image (shown with five times the vertical exaggeration of the actual topography), blocks sunlight from ever reaching portions of the floors of some polar craters.
This image features two such permanently shadowed craters which were recently named. Hurley crater, named for Australian James Francis Hurley (1885-1962), photographer of the famous Shackleton Expedition to Antarctica, is 67 km (42 mi.) wide and located within 3° of Mercury's south pole. The slightly smaller (62 km or 39 mi. wide) L'Engle crater is located to the east of Hurley. (Note that in the inset perspective image the view is towards the south). L'Engle crater is named for American author Madeleine L'Engle (1918-2007), best known for her young-adult novels including 'A Wrinkle in Time'. 'A Wrinkle in Time' blends adventure with quantum physics as it follows young heroine Meg on her journey through space to rescue her scientist father.
This primary image was acquired as part of MDIS's campaign to monitor the south polar region of Mercury. By imaging the polar region approximately every four MESSENGER orbits as illumination conditions change, features that were in shadow on earlier orbits can be discerned and any permanently shadowed areas can be identified after repeated imaging over one solar day. During MESSENGER's one-year primary mission, MDIS's WAC was used to monitor the south polar region for the first Mercury solar day (176 Earth days), and MDIS's NAC made repeated images of the south polar region during the second Mercury solar day. The inset image is a portion of the MDIS monochrome map draped over the Gaskell digital elevation model (with 5 times vertical exaggeration), as was also done for Monday's featured image.
Date acquired: August 03, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 220899377
Image ID: 587366
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filter: 7 (748 nanometers)
Center Latitude: -85.07°
Center Longitude: 67.57° E
Scale: The inset box is about 280 km (174 mi.) wide
Incidence Angle: 85.0°
Emission Angle: 23.4°
Phase Angle: 94.8°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
The image above shows a potential volcanic vent within the crater Glinka. The resolution of this image is more than two times better than previous images of the same area. The crater Glinka was named for the Russian composer Mikhail Glinka (1804-1857). He is regarded as one of the fathers of Russian classical music. Glinka wrote several operas, piano pieces, orchestral works, and chamber music. His piece called "The Patriotic Song" was adopted as Russia's national anthem from 1990-2000.
Date acquired: November 26, 2012
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 262402263
Image ID: 3026496
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 14.96°
Center Longitude: 247.4° E
Resolution: 44 meters/pixel
Scale: This image is 46 km (29 mi.) across.
Incidence Angle: 67.5°
Emission Angle: 3.1°
Phase Angle: 64.5°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
The recently named Donalaitis crater near the center of this image exhibits bright reddish deposits on its floor, which contrast starkly with the more relatively blue hues of the surrounding terrain. Donelaitis crater was named for Kristijonas Donelaitis (1714-1780), a Lithuanian poet. His classic poem, 'The Seasons (Metai)', describes the lives of Lithuanian peasants, who at the time of its writing were being pushed into serfdom as most of their country was annexed by the Russian Empire.
Date acquired: August 21, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 222408661, 222408681, 222408665
Image ID: 658976, 658981, 658977
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filters: 9, 7, 6 (996, 748, 433 nanometers) in red, green, and blue
Center Latitude: -51.81°
Center Longitude: 39.11° E
Resolution: 874 meters/pixel
Scale: Donelaitis crater is 84.5 km (52.5 mi.) across.
Incidence Angle: 56.2°
Emission Angle: 0.5°
Phase Angle: 55.7°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Today's image features a perspective view of two of the newly named craters near Mercury's south pole. To create this image, a portion of the MDIS monochrome basemap was draped over a digital elevation model. The topography has been exaggerated by 7 times to accentuate the rugged terrain formed by numerous overlapping craters.
In the foreground, sunlight highlights much of the rim of the dark Lovecraft crater, named for the American horror author Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890-1937). The larger Roerich crater, named for the Russian painter Nicholas Roerich (1874-1947), lies slightly to the north of Lovecraft crater. One of Lovecraft's most famous works, 'At the Mountains of Madness' takes place on a scientific expedition to the south pole, and references Roerich's artwork--in particular, his paintings of the Tibetan plateau and the Himalayan Mountains. Portions of Lovecraft crater are shrouded in permanent darkness, and host radar-bright material. Similar deposits at the north pole have been associated with water ice and unusually dark material.
Instrument: Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: -85.10°
Center Longitude: 284.8° E
Basemap Resolution: approximately 250 meters/pixel
Digital Elevation Model: Produced by MESSENGER Participating Scientist Bob Gaskell based on MDIS images
Vertical Exaggeration: 7 times actual
Scale: Roerich crater is 111.7 km (69.4 miles) across.
Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
As promised in yesterday's featured image, here is another 3D anaglyph that was created from recently acquired images. View it with a pair of red-cyan 3D glasses to get the full effect and to see deep into this crater. The topography appears exaggerated in the stereo view of this roughly one-kilometer deep crater, accentuating the terraces on the crater's walls and the central peak, topped with hollows, rising from the crater's floor. This image has been rotated 90° to the right (such that north is to the right) for better viewing with the red-cyan glasses.
Date acquired: March 22, 2013
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET) (since January 8, 2013): 6291928, 6292156
Image ID: 3741269, 3741270
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 25.11°
Center Longitude: 266.4° E
Resolution: 36 meters/pixel
Scale: The diameter of this crater is 31 kilometers (19 miles)
Incidence Angle: 44.7°, 44.8°
Emission Angle: 40.5°, 35.5°
Phase Angle: 72.9°, 78.1°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
These two images were taken 133 seconds apart, and both show the hollow-covered central peak structure of an unnamed 60-kilometer crater. Why take two images of the same surface just over two minutes apart? To create a stereo view. The slight differences in the viewing geometries between these two quite similar looking images enables a 3D view of the surface to be created. So find a pair of red-cyan stereo glasses (or make some at home) and then check out tomorrow's combined 3D image.
These images were acquired as a targeted set of stereo images. Targeted stereo observations are acquired at resolutions much higher than that of the 200-meter/pixel stereo base map. These targets acquired with the NAC enable the detailed topography of Mercury's surface to be determined for a local area of interest.
Date acquired: March 24, 2013
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET) (since January 8, 2013): 6465097 (top), 6465230 (bottom)
Image ID: 3753557 (top), 3753558 (bottom)
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 36.20°
Center Longitude: 244.2° E
Resolution: 29 (top), 24 (bottom) meters/pixel
Scale: Each image is roughly 30 kilometers (19 miles) across
Incidence Angle: 61.7° (top), 61.7° (bottom)
Emission Angle: 21.1° (top), 7.9° (bottom)
Phase Angle: 65.8° (top), 69.6° (bottom)
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Update:
Find a pair of red-cyan 3D glasses to fully view this image. This anaglyph image was created from the two images featured yesterday, and shows the central peak structure of a 60-kilometer crater that is covered with hollows. In the anaglyph, the topography of the surface appears exaggerated; the height of this mountain of hollows is roughly about a kilometer. The image has also been rotated 90° to the right (such that north is to the right), to make the 3D effect easier to view on the screen.
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
This view of the topography of Mercury's north polar region complements yesterday's image of the day (PIA16950). Both were used during The Challenge of Discovery Educator Workshop, which was held last weekend. Workshop participants learned about MESSENGER's recent evidence for water ice near Mercury's poles through an activity that explored different datasets of Mercury's north polar region. Those activity materials can be viewed and download from this workshop website. In this view, MLA tracks across the surface are colored by the height of the surface relative to a reference sphere with a radius of 2440 kilometers.
Instrument: Mercury Laser Altimeter (MLA)
Center Latitude: 90° N
Map Projection: Polar stereographic projection, extending southward to 65° N, with 0° longitude at the bottom
Scale: The diameter of this polar map projection covers 2,130 kilometers (1320 miles)
Map credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Last weekend, MESSENGER team members participated in The Challenge of Discovery Educator Workshop. Held simultaneously at four locations across the United States, participants learned about MESSENGER's recent evidence for water ice near Mercury's poles. The view shown above is a mosaic of Mercury's north polar region, created from thousands of MDIS images obtained over MESSENGER's >2 years of orbital operations. It was part of an activity at the weekend's workshop, where different datasets from Mercury's north polar region were explored. View this workshop website to see and download other views of Mercury's north polar region.
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 90° N
Map Projection: Polar stereographic projection, extending southward to 65° N, with 0° longitude at the bottom
Scale: The diameter of this polar map projection covers 2,130 kilometers (1320 miles)
Map credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
The image above shows an area within an unnamed basin that has been etched by hollows. This is the only area within the basin in which hollows are found. To the bottom left, part of the peak ring of the basin can be seen. This peak ring has been modified by subsequent impacts.
Date acquired: February 13, 2013
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 3038823
Image ID: 3509823
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 43.52°
Center Longitude: 291.5° E
Resolution: 21 meters/pixel
Scale: This image is ~23 km (14 mi.) across.
Incidence Angle: 74.2°
Emission Angle: 10.4°
Phase Angle: 63.8°
Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
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