Wrinkle Ridge in the Goethe Impact Basin

This view shows the edge of the Goethe Basin. The margins of the basin interior are marked by wrinkle ridges. Part of one such ridge is shown in this image. The scene also includes small secondary crater chains on the smooth plains that fill the basin, and the hummocky terrain outside of the basin.

Date acquired: February 10, 2013
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 2778942, 2778934, 2778938
Image ID: 3491366, 3491364, 3491365
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: 82.92°
Center Longitude: 286.5° E
Resolution: 86 meters/pixel
Scale: The small crater in the center of the image is 2.7 km (1.7 miles) in diameter.
Incidence Angle: 88.0°
Emission Angle: 17.5°
Phase Angle: 87.8°

Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

A Wrinkle Ridge in Goethe Basin

This small unnamed crater occurs near a wrinkle ridge in Goethe Basin. Since this image was taken near the north pole of Mercury, the shadows are more dramatic than in the equatorial region.

Date acquired: February 09, 2013
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 2721322, 2721314, 2721318
Image ID: 3487267, 3487265, 3487266
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: 83.35°
Center Longitude: 291.6° E
Resolution: 86 meters/pixel
Scale: The larger crater in this image is 9.5 km in diameter (6 miles).
Incidence Angle: 87.6°
Emission Angle: 18.9°
Phase Angle: 87.5°

Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

Impact Craters in Goethe Basin

The two large craters in this scene are located in Goethe basin, a 383-km-diameter basin in the northern plains of Mercury. Portions of these craters are in areas of permanent shadow and host radar-bright materials.

Date acquired: March 29, 2012
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 241545232
Image ID: 1580685
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filter: 7 (748 nanometers)
Center Latitude: 82.99°
Center Longitude: 314.2° E
Resolution: 67 meters/pixel
Scale: The upper crater is approximately 25 km (15.5 mi.) in diameter.
Incidence Angle: 83.0°
Emission Angle: 28.3°
Phase Angle: 83.7°

Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

Goethe Impact Basin Topographical Map

Topographic information from the Mercury Laser Altimeter (MLA) is used to colorize a image mosaic of Goethe basin, located in Mercury's northern region. The purple colors are low and white is the highest; the total range of heights shown in this view is about 1 kilometer. Goethe basin is home to a variety of interesting features, including ghost craters with graben, wrinkle ridges that outline the basin, and dark craters that host radar-bright materials.

Scale: The width of this image is about 250 kilometers (150 miles)

Image credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

Ghost Crater

This scene, which lies within the Goethe basin, shows a ghost crater that is approximately 45 km in diameter. The crater contains prominent graben (extensional troughs) and is bound by a wrinkle ridge ring that marks the location of the crater rim.

Date acquired: April 29, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 212590628
Image ID: 192049
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filter: 7 (748 nanometers)
Center Latitude: 81.4°
Center Longitude: 301.9° E
Resolution: 163 meters/pixel
Scale: The ghost crater containing many troughs is approximately 45 km (28 mi.) in diameter.
Incidence Angle: 82.8°
Emission Angle: 5.4°
Phase Angle: 88.2°

Photo credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington