Rustaveli (crater) explained
Rustaveli is a crater on Mercury. Its name was adopted by the International Astronomical Union in 2012, after the Georgian poet Shota Rustaveli.[1]
Rustaveli is one of 110 peak ring basins on Mercury.[2] The interior has mostly been flooded by impact melt or volcanic deposits.[3]
A confirmed dark spot is present in northern Rustaveli.[4] This dark spot is associated with hollows (see below).
To the east of Rustaveli is Kulthum crater. The crater Copland and Nathair Facula are to the southwest.
Hollows
Hollows are present on the floor of Rustaveli crater.
Notes and References
- Web site: Rustaveli . . Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature . 27 March 2020.
- Chapman, C. R., Baker, D. M. H., Barnouin, O. S., Fassett, C. I., Marchie, S., Merline, W. J., Ostrach, L. R., Prockter, L. M., and Strom, R. G., 2018. Impact Cratering of Mercury. In Mercury: The View After MESSENGER edited by Sean C. Solomon, Larry R. Nittler, and Brian J. Anderson. Cambridge Planetary Science. Chapter 9.
- https://messenger.jhuapl.edu/Explore/Science-Images-Database/gallery-image-598.html Mercury's Smile
- Zhiyong Xiao, Robert G. Strom, David T. Blewett, Paul K. Byrne, Sean C. Solomon, Scott L. Murchie, Ann L. Sprague, Deborah L. Domingue, Jörn Helbert, 2013. Dark spots on Mercury: A distinctive low-reflectance material and its relation to hollows. Journal of Geophysical Research Planets. doi.org/10.1002/jgre.20115
