Date acquired: November 06, 2011
Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 229105596, 229105592, 229105588
Image ID: 980566, 980565, 980564
Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS)
WAC filters: 9, 7, 6 (996, 748, 433 nanometers) in red, green, and blue
Center Latitude: 25.42°
Center Longitude: 266.8° E
Resolution: 121 meters/pixel
Scale: The bright unnamed crater is about 33 km in diameter (21mi.)
Incidence Angle: 52.3°
Emission Angle: 16.8°
Phase Angle: 69.1°

Of Interest: This false color image shows a bright fresh crater exhibiting possible evidence of a pyroclastic deposit on it's eastern side (shown by the bright yellow); as well as a series of secondaries which have excavated sub-surface material resulting in the blues seen in the north-east corner of the image.

This image was acquired as a high-resolution targeted color observation. Targeted color observations are images of a small area on Mercury's surface at resolutions higher than the 1-kilometer/pixel 8-color base map. During MESSENGER's one-year primary mission, hundreds of targeted color observations were obtained. During MESSENGER's extended mission, high-resolution targeted color observations are more rare, as the 3-color base map covered Mercury's northern hemisphere with the highest-resolution color images that are possible.

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.