Molesworth (crater)

Molesworth Crater
Map of Aeolis quadrangle. The Spirit Rover landed in Gusev crater. It found volcanic rocks that probably came from Apollinaris Patera. A large pile of layered rocks sits in the middle of Gale Crater.
Planet Mars
Region Aeolis quadrangle
Coordinates 27°42′S 210°54′W / 27.7°S 210.9°W / -27.7; -210.9Coordinates: 27°42′S 210°54′W / 27.7°S 210.9°W / -27.7; -210.9
Diameter 181 km
Eponym Percy B. Molesworth, a British astronomer (1867–1908)

Molesworth Crater is a crater in the Aeolis quadrangle of Mars, located at 27.7° south latitude and 210.9° west longitude, and is inside Terra Cimmeria. It is 181 km in diameter and was named after Percy B. Molesworth, a British astronomer (1867–1908).[1]

Nearby craters include Graff and Hadley to the NNE, Martz and Horowitz to the south and Soffen further northwest.

Molesworth Crater has a central peak. Impact craters generally have a rim with ejecta around them, in contrast volcanic craters usually do not have a rim or ejecta deposits. As craters get larger (greater than 10 km in diameter) they usually have a central peak.[2] The peak is caused by a rebound of the crater floor following the impact.[3]

Significance of craters

The area around craters may be rich in minerals. On Mars, heat from the impact melts ice in the ground. Water from the melting ice dissolves minerals, and then deposits them in cracks or faults that were produced with the impact. This process, called hydrothermal alteration, is a major way in which ore deposits are produced. The area around Martian craters may be rich in useful ores for the future colonization of Mars.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature | Molesworth". usgs.gov. International Astronomical Union. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.lpi.usra.edu/publications/slidesets/stones/
  3. ↑ Hugh H. Kieffer (1992). Mars. University of Arizona Press. ISBN 978-0-8165-1257-7. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  4. ↑ http://www.indiana.edu/~sierra/papers/2003/Patterson.html.
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