Celestial Bodies and Craters

Images of celestial surfaces featuring craters and geological formations from various planets and moons, showcasing textured gray landscapes.

Inside Eminescu

Ring Around the Basin

A large crater in the southern hemisphere of dwarf planet Ceres is seen in this image taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft on June 6, 2015.

Mercury's Firdousi Honors the Persian Poet

The linear rille Rima Ariadaeus is found on the nearside of the Moon, nestled between Mare Tranquillitatis and Mare Vaporum in this image taken by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Eratosthenes Crater and the Lunar Timescale

The rim of Hamori Crater on Ceres is seen in the upper right portion of this image, which was taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft. Hamori is located in the southern hemisphere of Ceres and measures 37 miles (60 kilometers) wide.

A section of a lobate scarp inside Karrer crater.

Inside Eminescu

Lavas, and Craters, and Scarps! (Oh, My!)

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows a scene located at mid-latitudes in the southern hemisphere of Ceres. The view features a portion of a crater between the large impact features Urvara and Yalode.

Right Angle

Part of the southern hemisphere on dwarf planet Ceres is seen in this image taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft. This left side of the image shows the eastern rim of Urvara crater.

Eject! Eject! Eject!

A Long Scarp Revisited

As NASA's MESSENGER enters its final days, we are getting our last looks at some of our favorite features. Hollows, discovered in MDIS images during the orbital phase of the mission, are always photogenic.

NASA's Dawn spacecraft obtained this image of craters and grooves in the south polar region on asteroid Vesta with its framing camera on Sept. 3, 2011. The image has a resolution of about 220 meters per pixel.

Mercury's Izquierdo: An Impact Basin Newly Named for the Mexican Painter

Diverse textures on the floor of Saha E which could be the result of impact melt coating boulders and other deposits on the floor of the crater on the lunar farside in this image taken by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter.

Raditladi's Troughs

Shortly following NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft's closest approach to Mercury on January 14, 2008, the spacecraft's Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) instrument acquired this image as part of a mosaic that covers much of the sunlit portion of the hemisphere.

NASA's Dawn spacecraft obtained this image of asteroid Vesta with its framing camera on Sept. 09, 2011. This image of the south polar region was taken at a distance of 864 miles (1,390 kilometers). The image has a resolution of about 130 meters per pixel.

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft, taken June 7, 2016, shows part of Lono Crater (at bottom) within the giant Yalode impact basin on Ceres.

Revisiting Some of MESSENGER's Early Discoveries and Anticipating More in 2011

Up and Down

Wall Slumps

The Southern Wall of Stravinsky

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows an interior wall and southern terrace of Marcia crater on Vesta. Relatively smooth material covers much of the terrace and has flowed downslope (toward the top of the image) through channels.

Far edge of the Giordano Bruno crater ejecta blanket.

Defacing a Basin

Highlighting the Craters Kipling and Steichen

Praxiteles' Highs and Lows

Hummocky Terrain

$This intersection of two fractures within the crater Gassendi forms a rough 'Y.'$

$NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this image close up view of Copernicus crater showing light-toned fractured bedrock exposed on the higher slopes on the central structural uplift.$

Dark Material on Mercury

The Gazelle

This image from NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft is the last one acquired and transmitted back to Earth by the mission. The image is located within the floor of the 93-kilometer-diameter crater Jokai.

The Scarp in Rembrandt

Ejected material appears bright around some of Dione's craters in the image taken during NASA's Cassini spacecraft's flyby of the moon on March 28, 2012.

Crater Captivation

A Molten Flood

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft of asteroid Vesta shows hows a large impact crater whose rim is rather smoothed and degraded. There are many smaller, younger craters surrounding and inside of this crater and these have sharper, fresher rims.

Delightful de Graft

A Wider View

This image of asteroid Vesta from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows an old, very degraded crater that is almost completely filled with regolith. Regolith is the fine-grained material that covers most of Vesta's surface.

Happy Hollow-een!

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows Caparronia crater on asteroid Vesta, an unusually shaped, irregular rim that is sharp and fresh in some areas and more rounded and degraded in others.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 2,700 miles (4,400 kilometers). The image, with a resolution of 1,400 feet (410 meters) per pixel, was taken on June 24, 2015.

This view from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows high northern latitudes on Ceres. Dawn acquired the image on Oct. 17, 2015, from an altitude of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). It has a resolution of 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel.

Matisse Crater on Mercury

This image of Nar Sulcus in Yalode Crater was obtained by NASA's Dawn spacecraft on May 19, 2018 from an altitude of about 875 miles (1410 kilometers). Nar Sulcus is located at about 42 degrees south in latitude and 280 degrees east in longitude.

The surface of Saturn's moon Rhea bears witness to its violent history. Each crater seen here by NASA's Cassini spacecraft records an impact in the moon's past.

This image taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows Duginavi Crater, a large (96 miles, 155 kilometers in diameter) crater on Ceres. Duginavi's degraded rim barely stands out in this picture, which indicates this feature is very old. There are several factors that alter and eventually erase the shapes of geological features on bodies that do not have an atmosphere. These include gravity, which is responsible for landslides and scarps. The formation of newer craters, and the material that gets ejected in the process, has smoothed over craters such as Duginavi. Duginavi hosts the small Oxo Crater, recognizable by its bright rim and ejecta. Oxo is the first site at which ice was discovered on Ceres. Duginavi is named for an agriculture god of the Kogi people of northern Colombia. Oxo bears the name of the god of agriculture in Afro-Brazilian beliefs of Yoruba derivation. These features can be found on the global map of Ceres. Dawn took this image on October 8, 2015, from its high-altitude ma

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 2,700 miles (4,400 kilometers). The image, with a resolution of 1,400 feet (410 meters) per pixel, was taken on June 18, 2015.

The southern rim of Copernicus crater.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows a portion of the northern hemisphere of dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). The image, with a resolution of 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel, was taken on August 21, 2015.

$This view from NASA's Dawn spacecraft captures the southeast rim of Dantu Crater. Bright material can be seen in some places along the walls. A network of fractures in the crater floor is visible at upper right.$

A complex history of geological evolution is recorded in this frame from the Narrow Angle Camera (NAC), part of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS) instrument, taken during NASA's MESSENGER's close flyby of Mercury on January 14, 2008.

$This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows the southeastern rim of Occator Crater. Compacted material forms spurs along the crater wall. A group of roughly parallel, braided fractures can be seen on the crater floor at top center.$

The surface in this scene captured by NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft has been pummeled by secondary craters, possibly from the impact that formed the nearby Mickiewicz crater.

This view from NASA's Dawn spacecraft captures gently curving canyons amid cratered plains on Ceres. The image is centered at approximately 31 degrees south latitude, 259 degrees east longitude, just north of the large crater Urvara.

The Caloris Montes

This image of Vibidia AV-L-20, from the atlas of the giant asteroid Vesta, was created from images taken as NASA's Dawn mission flew around the object, also known as a protoplanet.

This view from NASA's Dawn spacecraft taken on May 30, 2016, at a distance of about 240 miles (385 kilometers) above the surface, shows the center of Gaue Crater (52 miles or 84 kilometers wide) on Ceres.

Fractures in the mare of Tsiolkovskiy Crater

Ceres' mysterious mountain Ahuna Mons is seen in this mosaic of images from NASA's Dawn spacecraft, taken in December 2015.

Guessing the Number of Craters in this Image

Craters in the northern hemisphere of dwarf planet Ceres are seen in this image taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft on June 6, 2015.

Sister Ray

This picture captured by NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows shows a crater in the southern hemisphere of Ceres with a complex of central peaks.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows the surface of dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). The image was taken on September 9, 2015, and has a resolution of 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel.

THEMIS ART #98

NASA's Dawn spacecraft took this image of Rao Crater (7 miles, 12 kilometers) at center left. on May 30, 2016.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows the surface of dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). The image, with a resolution of 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel, was taken on August 27, 2015.

The cliff-like feature crossing this image from NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft from top to bottom is one of Mercury's famed lobate scarps, and is called Pourquoi-Pas Rupes.

This image from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter shows Vallis Lorca, one of four lobes that make up Aratus CA in western Mare Serenitatis near the Montes Apennius.

NASA's Dawn spacecraft captured this image of unnamed craters in the southern hemisphere of Ceres on Dec. 18, 2015. The image is centered at approximately 45 degrees south latitude, 325 degrees east longitude.

Craters with Dark Halos on Mercury

These images show cratered regions near the moon's Mare Nubium region, as photographed by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's LROC instrument. Each image shows a region 1,400 meters (0.87 miles) wide. the bottoms of both images face lunar north. The image below shows the location of these two images in relation to each other.

This image of Matronalia AV-L-25, from the atlas of the giant asteroid Vesta, was created from images taken as NASA's Dawn mission flew around the object, also known as a protoplanet.

Dawn took this image on June 3, 2016, from its low-altitude mapping orbit, at a distance of about 240 miles (385 kilometers) above the surface. This view shows terrain located at approximately 60 degrees north latitude on Ceres.

Mozart says...

This image, from NASA's Mariner 10 spacecraft which launched in 1974, shows an old basin's hummocky rim is partly degraded and cratered by later events.

A Newly Imaged Basin

The Pit

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 2,700 miles (4,400 kilometers). The image, with a resolution of 1,400 feet (410 meters) per pixel, was taken on June 9, 2015.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows the surface of dwarf planet Ceres at mid-latitudes from an altitude of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). The image was taken on Sept. 29, 2015, and has a resolution of 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel.

The image shows Claudia (arrow), a tiny crater through which by definition Vesta's prime meridian runs from the asteroid's north pole to its south pole. This image is from NASA's Dawn spacecraft.

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft of asteroid Vesta shows Scantia crater, located in Vesta's Floronia quadrangle, in Vesta's northern hemisphere.

Hopper Hosts Hollows

A Shocking Discovery

This view, taken on June 17, 2016 from NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows the rim of Ernutet Crater (32 miles, 52 kilometers in diameter) on Ceres.

This view from NASA's Dawn spacecraft shows cratered terrain on Ceres, centered at 10 degrees south latitude, 197 degrees east longitude.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows a portion of the southern hemisphere of dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 915 miles (1,470 kilometers). The image was taken on Sept. 20, 2015, and has a resolution of 450 feet (140 meters) per pixel.

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft is dominated by bright rayed craters of different sizes. The most prominent bright rayed crater is named Tuccia.

This image from NASA's Dawn spacecraft of asteroid Vesta shows many secondary crater chains on Vesta's surface. This image is located in Vesta's Domitia quadrangle, in Vesta's northern hemisphere.

Bartok's Symphony

These images from NASA's Dawn spacecraft are located in asteroid Vesta's Lucaria Tholus quadrangle, in Vesta's northern hemisphere; the fine-scale of streaks of bright and dark material can be seen originating from the rim of Publicia crater.

This image, taken by NASA's Dawn spacecraft, shows dwarf planet Ceres from an altitude of 2,700 miles (4,400 kilometers). The image, with a resolution of 1,400 feet (410 meters) per pixel, was taken on June 9, 2015.

This image was obtained by NASA's Dawn spacecraft on July 24, 2018 from an altitude of about 36 miles (58 kilometers). The center of this picture is located at about 46.1 degrees south latitude and 248.5 degrees east longitude.

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