Craters Munch, Sander and Poe

The top image is a MASCS VIRS interpolated color composite of craters Munch and Sander (center), with Poe toward the east. These craters are in the north of Caloris basin. The center image is a MASCS color composite showing individual spectral footprints. The bottom image is a monochrome MDIS mosaic of the same area. The three crater rims are blue, indicating low reflectance. Sander's floor is yellow, however, which is high reflectance and indicative of fresh material.

The VIRS composite shows hundreds of individual footprints tracks (minimum 100-200 m across and 3-4 km long) taken from different directions and altitudes. In locations where multiple footprints cover the same area, the footprint with the best illumination for mineralogical interpretation (usually the lowest incidence angle where shadows are minimized) is used for making the map. In areas where footprints are sparse (separated by tens of km), observations are interpolated for complete coverage of the surface. This is particularly true in the northern hemisphere, where Caloris is located. In the MDIS mosaic, some brightness variations are due to tiling of images taken at different illuminations.

Date Created: June 16, 2014
Instruments: Visible and Infrared Spectrograph (VIRS) of the Mercury Atmosphere and Surface Composition Spectrometer (MASCS) and Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
VIRS Color Composite Wavelengths: 575 nm as red, 415 nm/750 nm as green, 310 nm/390 nm as blue
Center Latitude: 42.5°
Center Longitude: 154.5° E
Resolution: 1 km/pixel
Scale: Sander crater (center) is about 50 km (31 mi.) in diameter.

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

Sander and Munch Craters

Today's image features a stunning view of two complex craters within the Caloris basin. The floor of Sander crater is covered with bright hollows, while Munch crater stands out due to its low-reflectance crater rim.

This image was acquired as a high-resolution targeted color observation. Targeted color observations are images of a small area on Mercury's surface at resolutions higher than the 1-kilometer/pixel 8-color base map. During MESSENGER's one-year primary mission, hundreds of targeted color observations were obtained. During MESSENGER's extended mission, high-resolution targeted color observations are more rare, as the 3-color base map covered Mercury's northern hemisphere with the highest-resolution color images that are possible.

Date acquired: April 26, 2014
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 40804465, 40804485, 40804469
Image ID: 6194731, 6194736, 6194732
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: 39.98°
Center Longitude: 153.1° E
Resolution: 290 meters/pixel
Scale: Sander crater is about 51 km (31.7 miles) in diameter
Incidence Angle: 46.9°
Emission Angle: 50.5°
Phase Angle: 79.7°

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

Hollows in an Unnamed Impact Crater

Today's image features the central peak complex of a large, unnamed crater on the plains surrounding the Caloris basin, roughly 400 km (250 mi) northwest of the crater Munch. The image has been stretched to highlight the details of the hollows that are forming on the crests of the peaks. The bright hollows on Mercury stand out in stark contrast to the low reflectance material with which they are frequently associated.

This image was acquired as a high-resolution targeted observation. Targeted observations are images of a small area on Mercury's surface at resolutions much higher than the 200-meter/pixel morphology base map. It is not possible to cover all of Mercury's surface at this high resolution, but typically several areas of high scientific interest are imaged in this mode each week.

Date acquired: July 05, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 218374017
Image ID: 466629
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 47.45°
Center Longitude: 145.6° E
Resolution: 30 meters/pixel
Scale: The image is about 31 km (19 mi.) wide
Incidence Angle: 48.0°
Emission Angle: 5.6°
Phase Angle: 53.7°

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

Munch Crater

This image is a portion of the MDIS global mosaic basemap that was acquired during MESSENGER's first year in orbit. The scene shows a dramatic close-up of Munch crater, named for the Norwegian impressionist painter, printmaker, and draftsman Edvard Munch (1863-1944). On Wednesday, May 2nd 2012, one of four versions of Munch's famous 1895 pastel The Scream sold at auction for $119.9 million, becoming one of the most expensive pieces of artwork in the world.

Munch crater is situated within the Caloris basin, the youngest large impact basin on Mercury. The floor of Caloris has been flooded with volcanic flows. The ejecta blanket surrounding Munch contains dark material that originated at depth and was excavated by the Munch-forming impact. This dark material may correspond to rock types -- termed lithologies -- that are mineralogically distinct from those we see on the surface.

Date Created: February 10, 2012
Instrument: Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Latitude Range: 39.2° N to 42.1° N
Longitude Range: 150.6° E to 155.3° E
Resolution: 140 meters/pixel
Scale: Munch crater is 58 km (36 mi.) in diameter
Projection: Azimuthal equidistant

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