This new, high-resolution view of Cunningham crater was recently acquired by MESSENGER. What you can't see in this image, which shows striking details of the crater's interior, is the extensive set of rays associated with Cunningham. The bright rays of Cunningham indicate that the crater is relatively young, having formed on Mercury likely within t
This new, high-resolution view of Cunningham crater was recently acquired by MESSENGER. What you can’t see in this image, which shows striking details of the crater’s interior, is the extensive set of rays associated with Cunningham. The bright rays of Cunningham indicate that the crater is relatively young, having formed on Mercury likely within the last billion years. In this new view, the preserved terraces of the crater walls, the well-defined central peak, and the limited number of overlying small craters are also all signs of Cunningham’s relative youth.
Date acquired: May 05, 2013Image Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics