NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Crater Captivation

This image, captured by the Narrow Angle Camera (NAC), shows an unnamed complex crater in Mercury's southern hemisphere. The smooth crater floor is likely due to impact melt that formed during the collision that produced the crater. Also visible are the peak ring and terraced walls, as well as the ejecta blanket and a large field of secondary craters and crater chains.

Date acquired: July 25, 2011

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