Topographic map issued by the American Geophysical Union
On December 15, 2009, the American Geophysical Union held a meeting at which delegates released the world's first topographic map of Mercury's surface.The surface topographic map of Mercury includes the latest Mercury data obtained by Messenger and the 1970s“Mariner 10 ”Early pictures of Mercury taken by the probe.USGSOn the basis of 917 pictures of Mercury, the surface topographic map of Mercury was drawn. The clarity and lighting conditions of these pictures are different, but advanced software can match these different pictures of Mercury to create a seamless continuous pattern on the surface of Mercury.
NASA released theMessenger detectorThe observation data obtained from the last flyby of Mercury, so farMercuryAbout 98% of the surface has been mapped, and scientists have obtained a nearly complete "map" of Mercury's surface.Messenger successfully flew over Mercury on September 29, 2009. During this period, the camera and other observation equipment on Messenger successfully photographed some places on the surface of Mercury that had never been observed before, expanding the surveyed area of the surface of Mercury to 98%.
First picture
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December 15, 2009American Geophysical UnionAt the meeting, the delegates released the world's first surface topographic map of Mercury.The surface topographic map of Mercury includes the latest Mercury data obtained by Messenger and the 1970s“Mariner 10 ”Early pictures of Mercury taken by the probe.
Formative history
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Topographic Map of Mercury Surface
Mercury is the closest to the sun in the solar systemplanetHuman beings do not know much about it.The last time a human probe observed Mercury at close range was in March 1975, when the American "Mariner 10" probe flew over Mercury for the last time. However, due to its limited observation ability, it could only observe one side of the hemisphere of Mercury.Messenger flew over Mercury in the early morning of January 15, 2008, and flew over Mercury for the second time on October 6, 2008. During this time, Messenger photographed 30% of the unobserved area of Mercury's surface.On September 29, 2009, MESSENGER completed its third and final mission to fly over Mercury. This time, the camera and other observation equipment on MESSENGER successfully photographed some places on the surface of Mercury that had never been observed before, which expanded the mapping area of the surface of Mercury to 98%.In addition to important tasks such as mapping the surface of Mercury, it also made a key flight adjustment with the help of Mercury gravity to ensure that it can successfully enter the orbit around Mercury in 2011.The release of the surface topographic map of Mercury marks a new stage of the probe mission. Messenger will orbit the planet closest to the sun for one year.
USGSOn the basis of 917 pictures of Mercury, the surface topographic map of Mercury was drawn. The clarity and lighting conditions of these pictures are different, but advanced software can match these different pictures of Mercury to create a seamless continuous pattern on the surface of Mercury.
Relevant background
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When MESSENGER flew over Mercury for the third and last time
The Messenger probe made this observation when it flew past Mercury for the third time on September 29, 2009, during which it obtained a lot of measurement data and photographed many hidden places on the surface of Mercury andatmospherePicture of.Due to the impact of data failure on the spacecraft during the overflight, only about half of the planned measurement work was carried out.
The $446 million probe flew over Mercury for the third time, within 142 miles (228 kilometers) of the planet's surface.More unknown areas have been observed during this flyby, and 98% of the surface topographic map of Mercury has been drawn.The purpose of this flyby is to change the operation route of Messenger with the help of Mercury's gravity, so that it will enter the orbit of Mercury in about 2011.
The observation data of Messenger show that there are a lot of such elements on the surface of Mercury, and their concentration is almost the same as that of the lunar perigeemare basalt The concentration of these substances in (nearby maria basalts) is similar, which means that the model of the formation and evolution of the planet must be modified.The third flight also captured the surface map of the unknown area.The high-definition color pictures taken by the spacecraft's cameras and instruments also show the other 6% of the planet's surface topography that has never been observed close before.The pictures taken during this flyby show the surface features of Mercury, which have been seen before, but the previous data are not detailed enough, so the surface map cannot be drawn.It can be seen from the figure that the area around an irregular low-pressure area is obviously very bright, with steep walls and strange shapes.arizona state university Brett Denevi, a member of the imaging research team and postdoctoral researcher of Tempe University, said: "All these are the characteristics of volcanic craters." Other pictures show a double ring impact basin, about 180 miles (289.68km) in diameter.The characteristics of this basin are very similar to those of the Raditladi basin.In 2008, when MESSENGER flew over Mercury for the first time, it observed the Radteladi Basin[1]。
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De Neville said, "One of the similarities is that the age of the Radteladi Basin is very similar to it. It is estimated that the basin is about 1 billion years old. For the impact basin, this age is not big, because most of the basins are about four times its age. The inner wall of the basin is even younger than the basin itself, and it is different from the surrounding color.We may have found younger volcanic material on Mercury. "
Messenger needs to travel 4.9 billion miles (7.89 × 1012 meters) to enter the orbit of Mercury, and it has completed nearly three quarters of the journey.The whole process includes 15 revolutions around the sun.In addition to flying over Mercury, Messenger also flew by the Earth in August 2005, and passed near Venus in October 2006 and June 2007.
