Date Presented: June 7, 2011, in
a MESSENGER Science Highlight article.
Of Interest: Comparison of Mariner 10 and MESSENGER images of Goethe basin (383 km in diameter) in the northern plains of Mercury. The MESSENGER image labeled b on the right is at 200 m/pixel and shows the region within box b in the Mariner 10 image on the left. A portion of a targeted area (box c) imaged by MESSENGER at 12 m/pixel is shown in the inset labeled c. Mariner 10 was not able to obtain these types of high-resolution images.
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. Visit the
Why Mercury? section of this website to learn more about the key science questions that the MESSENGER mission is addressing. During the one-year primary mission, MDIS is scheduled to acquire more than 75,000 images in support of MESSENGER's science goals.
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.