Image: The Mighty Caloris (PIA19213)
Description: Original caption: This is an MDIS mosaic of the mighty Caloris basin, Mercury's youngest large impact basin. Caloris has been filled by volcanic plains that are distinctive in color from the surrounding terrain. Subsequent craters have excavated low-reflectance material from beneath these volcanic plains, possibly giving clues to the composition of the basin floor. The basin interior has a complex tectonic history. The interior smooth plains have an area of 1.72 million km2 (0.66 million mi2), approximately the area of Alaska! Over 640 Rhode Islands would fit inside of this massive basin! This is a brightness-increased and resolution-decreased version of the original image.
Title: The Mighty Caloris (PIA19213)
Credit: link on MESSENGER site, link on NASA photojournal
Author: NASA
Usage Terms: Public domain
License: Public domain
Attribution Required?: No
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