Why it matters

Herschel shows how an impact structure can become the dominant visual fact of an entire moon.

What happenedA giant crater on Saturn's moon Mimas, so large it nearly defines the small world's appearance.
Why it mattersHerschel shows how an impact structure can become the dominant visual fact of an entire moon.
How scientists knowNASA Image and Video Library; Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature

Measurements and uncertainty

Diámetro139 km
Depthnot listed
Ageancient impact feature
EstadoConfirmado
Coordinates1.380° S / 111.760° W
Record levelminimal

Seed record: coordinates and diameter support navigation, while geology, age, and visual rights need enrichment.

Perfil científico

The crater's size relative to Mimas highlights the limits of impact processing on small icy bodies.

Data provenanceNASA Image and Video Library; Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature

Galería de reconstrucción

Más lecturas visuales del cráter

Si la imagen verificada no basta, la ficha recibe una reconstrucción científica: no fantasía en lugar de dato, sino una hipótesis visual separada de las fuentes.

Paleta del mundoicy turquoise, deep space, and distant moons
Herschel crater occupies a huge share of Mimas's visible disk.
Vista visual actualPlaca base: fuente, material orbital o lámina editorial donde empieza la lectura visual.
Reverse reconstructionmoving from the present trace back to the impact event
Chronological inversionreading the object from future state back through earlier layers
The present as an archive of the futuretreating today's profile as evidence for future analysis

Visual reconstruction

Reverse reconstruction → Chronological inversion → Bidirectional analysis → The present as an archive of the future

Cada ficha necesita una vista previa visual: una imagen existente, una fuente tratada estéticamente o una reconstrucción científica.

Reverse reconstructionmoving from the present trace back to the impact event
Chronological inversionreading the object from future state back through earlier layers
Bidirectional analysischecking past-to-present and present-to-past interpretations
The present as an archive of the futuretreating today's profile as evidence for future analysis

Historia de investigación

The feature is known from Saturn-system missions, including Cassini.

Fuentes

CSVJSONHerschel on Mimas. Crater.world record. Last reviewed 2026-05-08.
Last reviewed
2026-05-08
Source baseline
NASA Image and Video Library; Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature
Uncertainty note
Seed record: coordinates and diameter support navigation, while geology, age, and visual rights need enrichment.
NASA Image and Video LibraryNASAGazetteer of Planetary NomenclatureInternational Astronomical Union / USGS

Education mode

Datos

  • The crater diameter is a significant fraction of Mimas itself.
  • Its central peak is especially visible in images.
Glossaryejecta, impact melt, breccia, central peak, erosion
Classroom questionWhich evidence separates an impact crater from a volcanic caldera?
CompareOccator