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#884158 12/22/14 03:11 PM
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The MESSENGER spacecraft has been orbiting Mercury since 2011, and the mission is coming to an end this spring. The science team has asked the public for suggestions of names for five impact craters. They're already accepting entries and will continue to accept them until January 15, 2015 (23:59 UTC). Fifteen names will then be submitted to the International Astronomical Union (IAU) to choose the five winners.

There are IAU rules for naming impact craters on Mercury. They're named in honor of people who've made outstanding contributions to arts and humanities, e.g., writers, dancers, architects, painters, etc. The person must
(1) have been recognized as a significant figure for more than 50 years,
(2) have been dead for at least three years,
(3) not have the same name as any other feature in the Solar System,
(4) not have a name with any political, religious or military significance.

You'd be expected to justify your choice.

They say, “We are particularly interested in submissions that honor people from nations and cultural groups that are under-represented amongst the currently-named craters.”

Here is the list of existing names for craters on Mercury.


Last edited by Mona - Astronomy; 12/23/14 08:07 AM.

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You can find out more about one of the craters that they want to name. This one is of interest because it could possibly have frozen water in it. Not what you might expect on Mercury! MESSENGER will be investigating in before the mission is ended.


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This crater is in an area where none of the craters has a name. Considering that Mercury is covered in craters, thst's easily believable. By the way, I know the picture makes it look like as though it's in the middle of a grassy plain. The small print reminds us that it's a color-coded map to show topography. I have to admit that it mostly just looks green to me - we're obviously seeing a low-resolution version.


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This crater is cut by a cliff which means it formed before the cliff (known as a rupe). This kind of feature helps to build up the geological history of Mercury.

The competition organizers say,"As scientists study the incredible data returned by MESSENGER, it becomes important to give names to surface features that are of special scientific interest. For example, it is easier to say 'Mt. Everest' rather than the 8,484-metre peak located at 27°59′17″ N, 86°55′31″ E."


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Who in the arts do you think should be honored by having a crater named for her/him?

I thought a lot of people might name JRR Tolkien, considering the enduring popularity of his books and the films based on them. But I looked at the list of existing features on Mercury and see that there is already a Tolkien crater.


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Who would your choice be?

Mine would be Doris Lessing, the brilliant writer and Nobel Prize winner. But she doesn't qualify under the IAU (International Astronomical Union) guidelines, because she died just last year. They stipulate that the person must have been dead for at least three years. (I guess that is to provide enough time for any hideously embarrassing hidden misdeeds to be unearthed before someone is memorialized as a celestial feature!)

But they also usually use the person's last name as the name, and further say that if the name has already been used, then it can't be used again, even for a different person. So although Doris Lessing received numerous awards in her lifetime, she seems to barred from ever receiving this one. There is already a Lessing crater on Mercury. It was named for an 18th century German dramatist and critic named Gotthold Ephraim Lessing.

Last edited by Mona - Astronomy; 01/02/15 11:32 AM.

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Photo B is of an impact crater with a central peak and terracing, a textbook example of such a crater. In the impact, material is sent explosively outward to form rays. They're very noticeable in some craters. However I have to admit that I can't see them in this photo. Can you?


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I rather liked the idea of crater named after Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of the rock group Queen, an amazing talent and a songwriter whose songs continue to be popular. But I don't know that we could say he's been influential for fifty years, though it must be coming up to half a century.

Queen has recently acquired the very talented Adam Lambert as their vocalist. And of course their guitarist is the legendary Brian May, who is one of the Musical Astronomers I wrote about awhile ago. He has a PhD in astrophysics.

But I do think having a Mercury Crater on Mercury would be very cool.


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MESSENGER's mission will finish anytime now with the space craft plunging to the planet's surface. The mission has already been extended by using the fuel that's left to boost the craft to a higher orbit. They hoped that would keep it going until April. OK, it's now March 31st, so I think they've been successful. But any minute ........


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Latest news on the MESSENGER mission. It's still in orbit and they hope to lift it into a slightly higher orbit on April 24. This takes some fuel, but it then saves fuel. If the maneuver is successful, on April 30 the probe will then be crashed into the surface of Mercury.

Last edited by Mona - Astronomy; 04/18/15 06:51 AM.

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