Hovnatanian (crater)

Hovnatanian
Planet	Mercury
Coordinates	7°36′S 187°30′W / 7.6°S 187.5°WCoordinates: 7°36′S 187°30′W / 7.6°S 187.5°W
Quadrangle	Tolstoj quadrangle
Diameter	34 km
Eponym	Hakob Hovnatanyan

Hovnatanian is a crater on Mercury. Its “butterfly” pattern of ejecta rays were created by an impact at an even lower angle than that which formed neighboring Qi Baishi crater. From the "butterfly" pattern of rays (similar to Messier crater on the moon), the Hovnatanian impactor was travelling either north-to-south or south-to-north prior to hitting Mercury's surface.^[1]

The crater was named for Hakob Hovnatanyan, a 19th-century Armenian artist.

Views[]

MESSENGER image showing the bright crater floor and some of the extent of the rays
Oblique MESSENGER image at a low sun angle

References[]

^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2009-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

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[1] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-02-01. Retrieved 2009-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

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