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> Looking Toward the South Pole of Mercury - Jan 14 2008

Looking Toward the South Pole of Mercury - Jan 14 2008

author: Nasa/JHUAPL/ Carnegie Institution of Washington/Novapix

reference: a-mer04-00011

Image Size 300 DPI: 9 * 5 cm

On January 14, 2008, the MESSENGER spacecraft passed 200 kilometers (124 miles) above the surface of Mercury and snapped the first pictures of a side of Mercury not previously seen by spacecraft. This image shows that previously unseen side, with a view looking toward Mercury's south pole. The southern limb of the planet can be seen in the bottom right of the image. The bottom left of the image shows the transition from the sunlit, day side of Mercury to the dark, night side of the planet, a transition line known as the terminator. In the region near the terminator, the sun shines on the surface at a low angle, causing the rims of craters and other elevated surface features to cast long shadows, accentuating height differences in the image. This image was acquired about 98 minutes after MESSENGER's closest approach to Mercury, when the spacecraft was at a distance of about 33,000 kilometers (21,000 miles).

 

Keywords for this photo:

2008 - ASTRONOMY - BLACK AND WHITE - CRATER - IMPACT CRATER - LIMB - MERCURY - MESSENGER - PLANET -