Look West: Nasa Messenger Image - Release Date 4 Nov 2011

Date acquired: October 19, 2011 Image Mission Elapsed Time (MET): 227517025 Image ID: 904919 Instrument: Wide Angle Camera (WAC) of the Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS) WAC filter: 7 (748 nanometers) Center Latitude: 8.68° Center Longitude: 5.34° E Center Resolution: 264 meters/pixel Scale: The large crater near the center of the image is approximately 110 kilometers (68 miles) in diameter Center Incidence Angle: 85.9° Center Emission Angle: 56.0° Center Phase Angle: 142.0° Of Interest: This view was captured as MDIS pointed westward across Mercury's rough surface; west is at the top of this image, to give the same perspective view as seen by the camera. The foreground, which is very near the terminator, is covered in long shadows, while further off in the west, daylight still illuminates the cratered terrain. This image was acquired as part of MDIS's high-resolution surface morphology base map. The surface morphology base map will cover more than 90% of Mercury's surface with an average resolution of 250 meters/pixel (0.16 miles/pixel or 820 feet/pixel). Images acquired for the surface morphology base map typically have off-vertical Sun angles (i.e., high incidence angles) and visible shadows so as to reveal clearly the topographic form of geologic features.

Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington