Traces of large collisions on Vesta
Traces of large collisions on Vesta
The surface of the asteroid Vesta has two vast, overlapping impact craters at the south pole, roughly 400 and 500 kilometres in diameter, named Rheasilvia and Veneneia. A central mountain 20 kilometres tall rises at the geometric centre of Rheasilvia. It was formed when the surface rebounded after the impact. In the process, a large quantity of material was flung away from Vesta and numerous new, smaller asteroids were formed – known as the Vestoids. Some fragments reached Earth as meteorites.
Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA