Facts about Mimas's Herschel Crater
- 09
Fractures radiating from the antipodal point opposite Herschel Crater suggest seismic shockwaves from the impact traveled through Mimas and fractured its far side terrain.
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Named after astronomer William Herschel, Mimas's Herschel Crater gives the moon a striking resemblance to the Death Star from the Star Wars franchise.
- 07
Herschel Crater's ejecta blanket extends across Mimas's surface in patterns suggesting the impact occurred at an oblique angle rather than a perpendicular collision.
- 06
Temperatures across Herschel Crater's floor plunge to approximately minus 200 degrees Celsius, among the coldest regions on Mimas due to the crater's extreme depth and minimal solar heating.
- 05
Observations from the Cassini spacecraft revealed that Herschel Crater's rim reaches elevations of approximately 5 kilometers above surrounding terrain, making it among the most topographically pronounced impact basins in the inner solar system.
- 04
Mimas's rotation causes Herschel Crater to point directly away from Saturn, creating a perpetual 'face' effect that dominates the moon's Saturn-facing hemisphere.
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Impact modeling suggests Herschel Crater formed roughly 4 billion years ago, with the collision powerful enough to nearly shatter Mimas entirely.
- 02
Herschel Crater's central peak rises approximately 6 kilometers above the crater floor, creating Mimas's most prominent topographic feature visible from space.
- 01
The 130-kilometer-wide Herschel Crater covers roughly one-third of Mimas's surface, making it the largest impact feature relative to any moon in our solar system.