Nereus (crater)

This article is about the crater on Mars. For other uses of Nereus see Nereus (disambiguation).

Martian crater Nereus
Planet	Mars
Coordinates	2°06′55″S 5°31′16″W / 02.115303°S 05.521192°W / -02.115303; -05.521192Coordinates: 2°06′55″S 5°31′16″W / 02.115303°S 05.521192°W / -02.115303; -05.521192
Diameter	About 10 metres (33 ft)
Eponym	A Greek god, probably of the sea

Nereus is a small impact crater on Mars with a diameter of about 10 metres (33 ft).^[1] It is located just south of the planet's equator^[2] on the relatively smooth Meridiani Planum (plain).^[3]

It was discovered by the Opportunity Mars rover on Sol 2010 (2009-09-19), being noticed because it is surrounded by jagged rocks, and was the Astronomy Picture of the Day for 2009-10-19.

It is named for Nereus a Greek god who lived with the Nereids in the Aegean Sea.^[4]

See also

• List of craters on Mars
• Geology of Mars
• List of surface features of Mars seen by the Opportunity rover

References

1. ^ "Nereus Crater on Mars, Astronomy Picture of the Day". NASA. October 19, 2009. http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap091019.html. Retrieved October 27, 2009. 
2. ^ Google Mars KML file tracing Opportunity's route (includes coordinates), Tesheiner, UnmannedSpaceflight.com, 2009.
3. ^ Panorama of Nereus crater, hortonheardawho, Flickr, 2009-10-14.
4. ^ Hesiod, Theogony 233-36, is unequivocal that Nereus is the Old Man of the Sea (ἅλιος γέρων), whereas the Odyssey refers the sobriquet to Nereus (xxiv.58) to Proteus (iv.365, 387), and to Phorkys (xiii.96, 345).

External links

Photos

• Panorama of Nereus crater, hortonheardawho, Flickr, 2009-10-14.
• Close up in 3D of the western edge of Nereus crater, hortonheardawho, Flickr, 2009-10-10.
• Nereus Crater on Mars (panorama), Astronomy Picture of the Day, NASA, 2009-10-19.
• Opportunity Panoramic Camera Raw Images for Sol 2010, NASA/JPL/Caltech, 2009.