Facts about Callisto's Valhalla Basin
- 08
Valhalla's impact basin on Callisto contains a distinctive bright ray system extending thousands of kilometers outward, composed of relatively young ice deposits that stand out against the darker, older surrounding terrain.
- 07
Shock waves from Valhalla's impact on Callisto propagated through the moon's icy crust at speeds exceeding 5 kilometers per second, creating the basin's distinctive multi-ring structure.
- 06
Galileo spacecraft observations suggest Callisto's Valhalla Basin experienced significant post-impact modification, with younger ice deposits partially obscuring the original ejecta pattern across the moon's surface.
- 05
Imaging data from NASA's Galileo spacecraft revealed that Valhalla's ejecta blanket on Callisto extends across multiple terrain types, including heavily cratered highlands and younger, smoother plains.
- 04
Valhalla's central impact basin on Callisto displays a notably flat floor approximately 600 kilometers in diameter, suggesting the impactor's energy was sufficient to melt subsurface ice.
- 03
The Valhalla Basin on Callisto formed approximately 4 billion years ago during the late heavy bombardment period of the solar system.
- 02
Concentric ridges and valleys in Callisto's Valhalla Basin extend outward for over 1,500 kilometers from the impact center, creating a distinctive ringed topography.
- 01
Nearly 4,000 kilometers wide, Callisto's Valhalla Basin represents the largest impact structure in the entire solar system.