PIA12268: Outlining MESSENGER's New Imaging Coverage


Outlining MESSENGER’s New Imaging Coverage

Caption:

MESSENGER imaged Mercury's partially sunlit surface on its approach to the planet yesterday. This WAC image reveals approximately an additional 5% of the surface (outlined in red) that had been previously unseen by spacecraft. Among the many newly imaged surface features are impact craters, smooth plains, and an intriguing double-ring basin approximately 260 kilometers (125 miles) in diameter. Rembrandt basin straddles Mercury's terminator (along the right side of the image).

Date Acquired: September 29, 2009
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 162741055
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC Filter: 7 (750 nanometers) Resolution: 4.8 kilometers/pixel (3.0 miles/pixel)
Scale: Mercury's diameter is 4880 kilometers (3030 miles)
Spacecraft Altitude: 26,900 kilometers (16,700 miles)

Background Info:

These images are from MESSENGER, a NASA Discovery mission to conduct the first orbital study of the innermost planet, Mercury. For information regarding the use of images, see the MESSENGER image use policy .

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target Mercury
System
Target Type Planet
Mission MESSENGER
Instrument Host MESSENGER
Host Type Orbiter
Instrument Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Detector Narrow Angle Camera (NAC)
Extra Keywords Color, Crater, Impact
Acquisition Date
Release Date 2009-09-30
Date in Caption 2009-09-29
Image Credit NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA12268
Identifier PIA12268