Bashō (crater) explained

Bashō
Location:	Michelangelo quadrangle, Mercury
Type:	Impact crater
Coordinates:	-32.4°N -170.36°W
Eponym:	Matsuo Bashō

Bashō is a crater on Mercury named after Matsuo Bashō, a 17th-century Japanese writer.^[1] Bashō crater is only 74.62km (46.37miles) in diameter,^[2] but is a prominent feature on Mercury's surface, due to its bright rays. Photographs from NASA's Mariner 10 and MESSENGER spacecraft show a curious halo of dark material around the crater.^[3] The dark material is typically referred to as low-reflectance material (LRM) and there is evidence that it is caused by graphite.^[4]

Bashō is one of the largest craters of the Kuiperian system on Mercury. The largest is Bartók crater.^[5]

Notes and References

1. Book: International Astronomical Union. Transactions of the International Astronomical Union, Volume XVIIB. 30 November 1980. Springer Science & Business Media. 978-90-277-1159-5. 291.
2. Web site: Bashō. Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. IAU. February 11, 2014.
3. Web site: Catalog Page for PIA10650. photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov. 2008-05-12. 2015-10-16.
4. Web site: Mercury’s mysterious surface darkness revealed . Astronomy Now . 17 June 2024.
5. Denevi, B. W., Ernst, C. M., Prockter, L. M., and Robinson, M. S., 2018. The Geologic History of Mercury. In Mercury: The View After MESSENGER edited by Sean C. Solomon, Larry R. Nittler, and Brian J. Anderson. Cambridge Planetary Science. Chapter 6, Table 6.4.