Date acquired: April 11, 2014
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 39535979
Image ID: 6104625
Instrument: Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
Center Latitude: 81.25°
Center Longitude: 212.2° E
Resolution: 9 meters/pixel
Scale: This image is about 13 kilometers (8 miles) across.
Incidence Angle: 81.4°
Emission Angle: 36.3°
Phase Angle: 82.5°

Of Interest: Running diagonally across today's image, from the upper left to the lower right, is a wall of an ancient crater that encompasses the crater Purcell. Purcell and the larger crater are both ancient, as evidenced by the numerous small craters that cover them, including their walls. This high-resolution image reveals how the small craters that formed on the wall display some differences from those formed on the more level neighboring surfaces.

This image was acquired as part of the MDIS low-altitude imaging campaign. During MESSENGER's second extended mission, the spacecraft makes a progressively closer approach to Mercury's surface than at any previous point in the mission, enabling the acquisition of high-spatial-resolution data. For spacecraft altitudes below 350 kilometers, NAC images are acquired with pixel scales ranging from 20 meters to as little as 2 meters.

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. During the first two years of orbital operations, MESSENGER acquired over 150,000 images and extensive other data sets. MESSENGER is capable of continuing orbital operations until early 2015.

Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

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