Geology of the Michelangelo quadrangle (H12), Mercury
The Michelangelo quadrangle of Mercury (H12) encompasses the area between latitudes 22.5°S–65°S and longitudes 180°E–270°E. The quadrangle covers almost 6.5% of the planet’s surface with a total area of almost 5 million km<sup>2</sup>. Geologic contacts and linear features were drawn at a mapping scale between 1:300,000 and 1:600,000, based on photointerpretation of MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS) imagery. We distinguish three geomorphological plains units (smooth, intermediate, and intercrater plains) and, based on their degradation state, three morpho-stratigraphic classes of craters with diameter ≥ 20 km. The surface of this quadrangle is dominated by intermediate plains and by degraded crater materials of class c2. The geological map at 1:3,000,000 scale improves the existing 1:5,000,000 map based on Mariner-10 data. This work is a contribution to the Mercury geological map series planned to foster observational strategies of the ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission.
Authors
- Felix Prüße
- Luigi Ferranti (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0531-6763)
- Salvatore Buoninfante (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2596-9267)
- L. Guzzetta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3619-1032)
- P. Palumbo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2323-9228)
- Benjamin Man (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9056-6072)
- David A. Rothery (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9077-3167)
- A. J. Blance (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9136-8438)
- H. Hiesinger (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7688-1965)
- Valentina Galluzzi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3237-3456)
- A. R. Lennox (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-9305-6512)
- Maurizio Milano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8907-6428)
Institutions
- The Open University (GB)
- University of Münster (DE)
- Institute for Space Astrophysics and Planetology (IT)
- Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania (IT)
- University of Naples Federico II (IT)
- National Institute for Astrophysics (IT)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Journal of Maps
- Published
- 2025-01-27
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2025.2451791
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Planetary Science and Exploration
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.15
Funders
- Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
- UK Research and Innovation
- Agenzia Spaziale Italiana
- U.S. Geological Survey
- Science and Technology Facilities Council