New models of various properties of Prokofiev crater on Mercury: (a)
elevation, (b) illumination, (c) maximum temperature, and (d) depth at
which ice is stable. These maps have a resolution of 125 meters per
pixel. Click for high-resolution version. Credit: Barker et al. 2022
With daytime temperatures soaring to 427℃ (800℉), Mercury seems like an
unlikely place to find ice, but the poles of the airless planet can be
surprisingly frosty. Using images and elevation data from the Mercury
Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER)
spacecraft, a team led by Michael Barker (NASA’s Goddard Space Flight
Center) inspected a permanently shadowed north polar crater named
Prokofiev, which contains a radar-bright region thought to be surface
ice. As shown in the images to the right, Barker and collaborators
modeled the crater’s elevation, illumination, maximum temperature, and
depth below the surface at which water ice could be stable. This
modeling confirmed that the crater has the right conditions to host
surface ice, and further analysis suggests that the radar-bright region
may be a layer of ice up to 26 meters thick. The ice isn’t pure water,
though — part of the ice is covered by a dark silicate or hydrocarbon
material, the exact nature of which is unknown. To learn more about this
icy investigation, be sure to check out the full article below!
Citation
Citation
“New Constraints on the Volatile Deposit in Mercury’s North Polar Crater, Prokofiev,” Michael K. Barker et al 2022 Planet. Sci. J. 3 188. doi:10.3847/PSJ/ac7d5a
By Kerry Hensley
