Bonneville (crater)

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Bonneville Crater
Bonneville crater, Mars
Region Gusev Crater
Coordinates 14.6° S, 175.5° E
Diameter 210 m
Depth 14 m
Discoverer Spirit rover
Eponym Lake Bonneville
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Bonneville Crater is an impact crater on Mars. It is located within the much larger Gusev crater. Bonneville was visited by the Mars Exploration Rover 'Spirit' in 2004, during its exploration of the floor of Gusev. Bonneville is also the final resting place of Spirit's heat shield, jettisoned during the landing procedure; the heat-shield could be seen glinting on the opposite wall when Spirit photographed the crater. The crater is 210 meters in diameter, 14 meters deep and its rim rises 6.4 meters above the surrounding terrain. [1]

Bonneville Crater is named after Lake Bonneville, an ancient lake in Utah.

[edit] Formation and geology

The strata into which Bonneville formed is thought to be loose debris, although some of the ejecta may have originated from more competent rocks. No underlying bedrock was exposed in the crater or the numerous craterlets in Bonneville's walls. The crater is relatively pristine and in particular has not been affected by water based erosion. [1][2]

It is likely that Bonneville is a secondary crater, given its low depth to diameter ratio. [1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Squyres, et al. "Surficial Deposits at Gusev Crater Along Spirit Rover Traverses". Science 305 (5685): 807 - 810. doi:10.1126/science.1099849. 
  2. ^ Golombek, et al. Surfical geology of the Spirit rover traverse in Gusev Crater: dry and desiccating since the Hesperian. Retrieved on 2008-04-24.

[edit] External links

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