Vesta’s surface in 3D: a big mountain at the asteroid’s south pole
Vesta’s surface in 3D: a big mountain at the asteroid’s south pole
When NASA’s Dawn spacecraft sent the first images of asteroid Vesta, scientists were fascinated by an enormous mound inside a big circular depression at the south pole. From stereo images, recorded from an altitude of about 2400 kilometres, it was possible to compose 3D images showing the structure of the mountain, displayed in the right half of this anaglyph image. The base of the mountain has a diameter of about 200 kilometres, and its altitude above the surroundings is about 15 kilometres. The area around the peak of the mountain shows landslides recording downslope movement of material from the flanks of the mountain. Also visible are tectonic structures from the extension of Vesta’s crust.
Use red-cyan (red-blue, or red-green) glasses to have a three-dimensional impression of the image. Image resolution is about 250 metres per pixel.
