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This is a list of named craters on Mercury, the innermost planet of the
Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...
''(for other features, see list of geological features on Mercury)''. Most Mercurian craters are named after famous writers, artists and composers. According to the rules by IAU's
Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...
, all new craters must be named after an artist that was famous for more than fifty years, and dead for more than three years, before the date they are named. Craters larger than 250 km in diameter are referred to as "basins" ''(also see )''. As of 2021, there are 414 named Mercurian craters, a small fraction of the total number of named Solar System craters, most of which are
lunar Lunar most commonly means "of or relating to the Moon". Lunar may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lunar'' (series), a series of video games * "Lunar" (song), by David Guetta * "Lunar", a song by Priestess from the 2009 album ''Prior t ...
,
Martian Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has appeared as a setting in works of fiction since at least the mid-1600s. It became the most popular celestial object in fiction in the late 1800s as the Moon was evidently lifeless. At the time, the pr ...
and Venerian craters. Other, non-planetary bodies with numerous named craters include Callisto ( 141), Ganymede (
131 131 may refer to: *131 (number) *AD 131 *131 BC *131 (album), the album by Emarosa *131 (MBTA bus), the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority bus. For the MBTA bus, see 131 (MBTA bus). *131 (New Jersey bus) 131 may refer to: *131 (number) *AD ...
), Rhea (128), Vesta (90), Ceres (90), Dione (73),
Iapetus In Greek mythology, Iapetus (; ; grc, Ἰαπετός, Iapetós), also Japetus, is a Titan, the son of Uranus and Gaia and father of Atlas (mythology), Atlas, Prometheus, Epimetheus (mythology), Epimetheus, and Menoetius (mythology), Menoetius. ...
(58),
Enceladus Enceladus is the sixth-largest moon of Saturn (19th largest in the Solar System). It is about in diameter, about a tenth of that of Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Enceladus is mostly covered by fresh, clean ice, making it one of the most refle ...
(53), Tethys (50) and
Europa Europa may refer to: Places * Europe * Europa (Roman province), a province within the Diocese of Thrace * Europa (Seville Metro), Seville, Spain; a station on the Seville Metro * Europa City, Paris, France; a planned development * Europa Clif ...
( 41). For a full list, ''see List of craters in the Solar System''.


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Terminology

As on the
Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...
and
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
, sequences of craters and basins of differing relative ages provide the best means of establishing
stratigraphic Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithostra ...
order on Mercury.Stuart-Alexander, D. E., and Wilhelms, D. E., 1975, The Nectarian System, a new lunar time-stratigraphic unit: U.S. Geological Survey Journal of Research, v. 3, no. l, p. 53–58. Overlap relations among many large mercurian craters and basins are clearer than those on the Moon. Therefore, as this map shows, we can build up many local stratigraphic columns involving both crater or basin materials and nearby plains materials. Over all of Mercury, the crispness of crater rims and the morphology of their walls, central peaks, ejecta deposits, and secondary-crater fields have undergone systematic changes with time. The youngest craters or basins in a local stratigraphic sequence have the sharpest, crispest appearance. The oldest craters consist only of shallow depressions with slightly raised, rounded rims, some incomplete. On this basis, five age categories of craters and basins have been mapped; the characteristics of each are listed in the explanation. In addition, secondary crater fields are preserved around proportionally far more craters and basins on Mercury than on the Moon or Mars, and are particularly useful in determining overlap relations and degree of modification. Because only limited photographic evidence was available from ''
Mariner 10 ''Mariner 10'' was an American robotic space probe launched by NASA on 3 November 1973, to fly by the planets Mercury and Venus. It was the first spacecraft to perform flybys of multiple planets. ''Mariner 10'' was launched approximatel ...
''s three flybys of the planet, these divisions are often tentative. The five crater groups, from youngest to oldest, are: * c5: Fresh-appearing, sharp-rimmed, rayed craters. Highest
albedo Albedo (; ) is the measure of the diffuse reflection of solar radiation out of the total solar radiation and measured on a scale from 0, corresponding to a black body that absorbs all incident radiation, to 1, corresponding to a body that refle ...
in map area; haloes and rays may extend many crater diameters from rim crests. Superposed on all other map units. Generally smaller and fewer than older craters. * c4: Fresh but slightly modified craters—Similar in morphology to c5 craters but without bright haloes or rays; sharp rim crests; continuous ejecta blankets; very few superposed secondary craters. Floors consist of crater or smooth plains materials. * c3: Modified craters—Rim crest continuous but slightly rounded and subdued. Ejecta blanket generally less extensive than those of younger craters of similar size. Superposed craters and rays common; smooth plains and intermediate plains materials cover floors of many craters. Central peaks more common than in c4 craters, probably because of larger average size of c3 craters. * c2: Subdued craters—Low-rimmed, relatively shallow craters, many with discontinuous rim crests. Floors covered by smooth plains and intermediate plains materials. Crater density of ejecta blankets similar to that of intermediate plains material. * c1 Degraded craters—Similar to c2 crater material but more deteriorated; many superposed craters.


See also

* List of geological features on Mercury * List of quadrangles on Mercury


Note


References

* Batson R.M., Russell J.F. (1994), ''Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature'', United States Geological Survey Bulletin 212

* Davies M.E., Dwornik S.E., Gault D.E., Strom R.G. (1978), ''Atlas of Mercury'', NASA Scientific and Technical Information Offic


External links


USGS: Mercury nomenclature

USGS: Mercury Nomenclature: Craters


{{DEFAULTSORT:Craters on Mercury Impact craters on Mercury, * Mercury Mercury (planet)-related lists sv:Lista över geologiska strukturer på Merkurius#Kratrar