Carnegie Cuts a Crater

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Caption:

Carnegie Rupes makes a dramatic sight in this large image mosaic. The giant lobate scarp cuts through Duccio crater. If you were to approach the scarp from the southwest, you would find yourself facing a wall nearly 2 km high! Be sure to zoom in for a closer look!

Carnegie Rupes was named after a research vessel launched in 1909. The ship was built almost entirely from wood and other non-magnetic materials to allow sensitive magnetic measurements to be taken for the Carnegie Institution's Department of Terrestrial Magnetism.

Instrument: Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 57.6°
Center Longitude: 306.2° E
Resolution: 250 meters/pixel
Scale: Duccio crater is approximately 133 km (83 mi.) in diameter.

Background Info:

The MESSENGER spacecraft is the first ever to orbit the planet Mercury, and the spacecraft's seven scientific instruments and radio science investigation are unraveling the history and evolution of the Solar System's innermost planet. In the mission's more than four years of orbital operations, MESSENGER has acquired over 250,000 images and extensive other data sets. MESSENGER's highly successful orbital mission is about to come to an end , as the spacecraft runs out of propellant and the force of solar gravity causes it to impact the surface of Mercury, estimated to occur on or before April 30, 2015.

For information regarding the use of images, see the MESSENGER image use policy .

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