Petronius (crater)

Coordinates: 86°04′N 40°31′W / 86.06°N 40.51°W / 86.06; -40.51
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Petronius
MESSENGER WAC
PlanetMercury
Coordinates86°04′N 40°31′W / 86.06°N 40.51°W / 86.06; -40.51
QuadrangleBorealis
Diameter36 km (22 mi)
EponymPetronius

Petronius is a crater on Mercury. It has a diameter of 36 kilometres (22 miles). Its name was adopted by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) on the August 6, 2012. Petronius is named for the Roman author Petronius.[1][2]

Two views of the interior of Petronius crater. These long-exposure images show a star-shaped central peak whose summit is illuminated by sunlight.

Petronius has a region of permanent shadow on much of its floor, which has a bright radar signature. This is interpreted to represent a deposit of water ice.[3][4]

Radar-bright deposits near the north pole. Petronius is left of center.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Petronius". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. NASA. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  2. ^ Jason Major (14 August 2012). ""The Hobbit" Author Gets a Crater on Mercury". Universe Today. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
  3. ^ PIA19411: Water Ice on Mercury, NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington
  4. ^ John K. Harmon, Martin A. Slade, Melissa S. Rice, 2011. Radar imagery of Mercury’s putative polar ice: 1999–2005 Arecibo results. Icarus, 211, p37-50. doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2010.08.007


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