Why it matters

Mead sets the scale for the Venus section and asks the interface to explain radar imagery.

What happenedThe largest known impact structure on Venus, expressed through radar data.
Why it mattersMead sets the scale for the Venus section and asks the interface to explain radar imagery.
How scientists knowGazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature; NASA Image and Video Library

Measurements and uncertainty

直径270 km
Depthnot listed
Agerelative to Venus's young surface
状态已确认
Coordinates12.500° N / 57.200° E
Record levelextended

Extended record: core parameters have an editorial baseline, while age, depth, and preservation still require primary-source review.

科学档案

The structure shows ring morphology, radar-bright ejecta, and the relationship between impact forms and Venusian terrain.

Data provenanceGazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature; NASA Image and Video Library

重建图廊

更多陨石坑视觉解读

如果已验证图像不足，档案会补充科学重建：不是用幻想替代事实，而是与来源清晰区分的视觉假设。

世界调色Venusian amber, radar, and dense atmosphere
Radar imagery reveals the surface through the dense atmosphere.
当前视觉预览基础图版：来源图像、轨道资料或编辑图版，视觉解读从这里开始。
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

每张档案都需要视觉预览：现有图像、经过美学处理的来源，或科学重建图。

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

研究历史

Its detailed image is primarily associated with Magellan radar mapping.

来源

CSVJSONMead. Crater.world record. Last reviewed 2026-05-08.
Last reviewed
2026-05-08
Source baseline
Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature; NASA Image and Video Library
Uncertainty note
Extended record: core parameters have an editorial baseline, while age, depth, and preservation still require primary-source review.
Gazetteer of Planetary NomenclatureInternational Astronomical Union / USGSNASA Image and Video LibraryNASA

Education mode

事实

  • Venus has few very small craters because of its dense atmosphere.
  • Mead is named after anthropologist Margaret Mead.
Glossaryejecta, impact melt, breccia, central peak, erosion
Classroom questionWhich evidence separates an impact crater from a volcanic caldera?
CompareDickinson