Waters Crater, et al

This WAC (Wide Angle Camera) image shows a large portion of the planet, known as a limb image. Prominent in this image is Waters crater in the top left corner, distinctive because of its bright rays and dark impact melt flow. Also identifiable in this picture are Beethoven basin, as well as the Bello crater, Rumi crater, Philoxenus crater, and partly visible: Palmer Rupes.

Date acquired: April 14, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 211284337
Image ID: 130687
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filter: 7 (748 nanometers)
Center Latitude: -21.12°
Center Longitude: 249.8° E
Resolution: 884 meters/pixel
Scale: Mercury's diameter is 4880 kilometers (3030 miles).
Incidence Angle: 69.6°
Emission Angle: 63.7°
Phase Angle: 28.0°

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

Spectral Web

The top image is a MASCS VIRS instrument color composite over a region of cratered plains on Mercury that includes craters Mena (upper left), Cezanne, Philoxenus, Chu Ta, and the unnamed "blue tongue" impact crater (lower right). Below is a contrast enhanced version of the MDIS mosaic without the VIRS overlay. In the VIRS color composite, the young rays of Mena and the blue tongue crater appear in yellows and oranges. Other colors in the VIRS composite are related to degree of space weathering and iron content of the surface materials.

Date Created: April 24, 2012
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: -4.5°
Center Longitude: 244.7° E
Resolution: 1 km/pixel
Scale: Crater Mena (upper left of mosaics) is 15 km (9 mi) across

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