Geology of the Shakespeare quadrangle (H03), Mercury

By using images acquired by the Mercury dual imaging system (MDIS) on-board the MESSENGER spacecraft during 2008–2015 and available DTMs, a new 1:3,000,000-scale geological map of the Shakespeare quadrangle of Mercury has been compiled. The quadrangle is located between latitudes 22.5°–65.0°N and longitudes 270.0°–180.0°E and covers an area of about 5 million km². The mapping was based on photo-interpretation performed on a reference monochromatic basemap of reflectance at 166 m/pixel resolution. The geological features were digitized within a geographic information system with a variable mapping scale between 1:300,000 and 1:600,000. This quadrangle is characterized by the occurrence of three main types of plains materials and four basin materials (pertaining to the Caloris basin), whose geologic boundaries have been here redefined compared to the previous map of the quadrangle. The stratigraphic relationships between the craters were based on three main degradation morphologies. Furthermore, previously unmapped tectonic landforms were detected and interpreted as thrusts or wrinkle ridges.

本研究借助2008至2015年间信使号（MESSENGER）探测器搭载的水星双成像系统（Mercury Dual Imaging System, MDIS）所获取的影像，以及公开可用的数字地形模型（Digital Terrain Model, DTM），成功编制水星莎士比亚象限图幅的1:300万比例尺全新地质图。该图幅地处北纬22.5°至65.0°、东经270.0°至180.0°范围，覆盖面积约500万平方千米。本次制图以分辨率为166米/像素的反射率单色基准底图为基础开展像片解译，地质要素在地理信息系统内完成数字化，制图比例尺动态调整于1:30万至1:60万区间。该象限图幅以发育三类主要平原物质与四类盆地物质（隶属于卡路里盆地（Caloris basin））为显著特征，相较该图幅既往地质图，本次研究重新厘定了其地质界线。撞击坑的地层关系依据三类主要退化形貌特征进行厘定。此外，本研究还识别出此前未被制图的构造地貌，并将其解译为冲断层或褶皱脊（wrinkle ridges）。