Science Poster - SMART-1
Date: 01 May 2006
Satellite: SMART-1
Depicts: Central region of lunar crater Zucchius
Copyright: ESA/SPACE-X
This image of the central peaks of crater Zucchius was obtained by AMIE on 14 January 2006 from a distance of about 753 kilometres from the surface, with a ground resolution of 68 metres per pixel.
Zucchius formed in the Copernican era, a period in the lunar planetary history that goes from 1200 million years ago to present times. Another example of craters from this period are Copernicus (about 800 milion years old) and Tycho (100 million years old). Craters from the Copernican era show characteristic ejecta ray patterns - as craters age, ejecta rays darken due to weathering by the flowing solar wind.
The hills near the centre of the image are the central peaks of the crater, features that form in large craters on the Moon. This type of feature is formed by the impact of a small asteroid onto the lunar surface. The surface is molten and, similarly to when a drop of water falls into a full cup of coffee, the hit surface bounces back and solidifies into the central peak.
The Zucchius crater is named after the Italian Mathematician and astronomer Niccolo Zucchi (1586-1670).
