.gif)
Eminescu (crater)
Encyclopedia
Eminescu is a peak ring crater
on Mercury
125 kilometres (77.7 mi) in diameter. Since there are very few later craters superposed on it, Eminescu appears to be a young crater formed around one billion years ago. It has a transitional morphology between larger more complex impact basins like Raditladi and smaller simpler central peak craters.
The impact ejecta and chains of secondary crater
s extend as far as one radius from the rim of Eminescu. There is no bright or dark crater rays. The crater rim itself is higher in altitude than the surrounding cratered plains. The crater walls are degraded by slumping forming distinct blocks of material. The floor of Eminescu has a complex structure, which includes ejecta deposits, impact melts and possibly units emplaced by the effusive volcanism
.
The bright bluish central peaks within the crater are arranged in a circular pattern forming a peak ring. The peaks exhibit unusual color characteristics similar to the bright crater floor deposits (BCFD) seen in other craters on Mercury. The crater floor both inside and outside the peak ring is covered by dark smooth plains, which appear to embay it. These plains are probably volcanic in origin. Further from the peak ring near the crater walls there are areas covered by a bright material. They are subdivided into the bright smooth plains in the north-east corner of Eminescu and mottled and rough terrain elsewhere. The bright units may be impact melts.
The crater is named after Mihail Eminescu, a Romanian poet (1850–1889).
Impact crater
In the broadest sense, the term impact crater can be applied to any depression, natural or manmade, resulting from the high velocity impact of a projectile with a larger body...
on Mercury
Mercury (planet)
Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 87.969 Earth days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt. It completes three rotations about its axis for every two orbits...
125 kilometres (77.7 mi) in diameter. Since there are very few later craters superposed on it, Eminescu appears to be a young crater formed around one billion years ago. It has a transitional morphology between larger more complex impact basins like Raditladi and smaller simpler central peak craters.
The impact ejecta and chains of secondary crater
Secondary crater
Secondary craters are impact craters formed by the ejecta that was thrown out of a larger crater. They sometimes form radial crater chains.-External links:*...
s extend as far as one radius from the rim of Eminescu. There is no bright or dark crater rays. The crater rim itself is higher in altitude than the surrounding cratered plains. The crater walls are degraded by slumping forming distinct blocks of material. The floor of Eminescu has a complex structure, which includes ejecta deposits, impact melts and possibly units emplaced by the effusive volcanism
Effusive eruption
An effusive eruption is a volcanic eruption characterized by the outpouring of lava onto the ground...
.
The bright bluish central peaks within the crater are arranged in a circular pattern forming a peak ring. The peaks exhibit unusual color characteristics similar to the bright crater floor deposits (BCFD) seen in other craters on Mercury. The crater floor both inside and outside the peak ring is covered by dark smooth plains, which appear to embay it. These plains are probably volcanic in origin. Further from the peak ring near the crater walls there are areas covered by a bright material. They are subdivided into the bright smooth plains in the north-east corner of Eminescu and mottled and rough terrain elsewhere. The bright units may be impact melts.
The crater is named after Mihail Eminescu, a Romanian poet (1850–1889).