Herschel crater

E603456

Herschel crater is a massive, prominent impact crater dominating one hemisphere of Saturn’s moon Mimas, giving the moon its characteristic “Death Star”-like appearance.

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Observed surface forms (1)

Surface form Occurrences
Herschel (lunar crater) 1

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf impact crater
planetary surface feature
albedo high, consistent with icy surface
associatedWithPopularCulture compared to Star Wars Death Star superlaser dish NERFINISHED
centralPeakHeight approximately 6 kilometers
classification large complex crater
coversFractionOfMimasDiameter about one third
depth approximately 10 kilometers
diameter approximately 130 kilometers
discoveredBy Voyager 1 NERFINISHED
dominates one hemisphere of Mimas
eponym William Herschel NERFINISHED
floorFeatures central peak and hummocky terrain
formationProcess hypervelocity impact
formedBy large impact event
givesAppearance Death Star-like appearance to Mimas
hasApproximateAge ancient
hasFeature central peak complex
relatively flat floor
steep inner walls
terraced walls
hasFractures radial and concentric fractures on and around rim
hasRimElevation several kilometers above crater floor
hasWallSlumping yes
imagedBy Cassini spacecraft NERFINISHED
Voyager 1 NERFINISHED
Voyager 2 NERFINISHED
influences global appearance of Mimas
isLargestCraterOn Mimas NERFINISHED
latitude approximately 0 degrees (near equator of Mimas)
locatedIn Saturn system NERFINISHED
locatedOn Mimas NERFINISHED
locatedOnBodyType icy moon
longitude approximately 110 degrees W (planetographic, approximate)
nameApprovedBy International Astronomical Union NERFINISHED
namedAfter William Herschel NERFINISHED
namedForDiscoveryOf planet Uranus by William Herschel
observedInDetailDuring Cassini mission flybys of Mimas NERFINISHED
orbitsWith Saturn NERFINISHED
outerRimCondition well-defined
planetaryBody Mimas NERFINISHED
radius approximately 65 kilometers
relativeSizeToMimasRadius about half of Mimas’s radius
riskedDisrupting structural integrity of Mimas
shape roughly circular
solarSystemRegion outer Solar System
surfaceComposition water ice
surfaceType heavily cratered icy terrain

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

John Herschel hasLunarCraterNamedAfter Herschel crater
this entity surface form: Herschel (lunar crater)
Mimas surfaceFeature Herschel crater