A New Look at Ceres' Impact Craters: Revisiting Crater Classification from a Morpho-Structural Perspective

This study investigates the morpho-structural characteristics of impact craters on Ceres, employing high-resolution topographic data and image mosaics from NASA’s Dawn mission. Ceres´craters were classified into four main categories: simple, modified, transitional, and complex, based on the morpho-structural distinctions observed. We introduce a refined classification for Ceres' complex craters, grouping them into three subcategories—Complex I, II, and III—based on their morpho-structural characteristics (such as the presence of central peaks, terraces, flat floors, etc.).本研究聚焦谷神星（Ceres）撞击坑的形态结构特征，采用美国国家航空航天局（NASA）黎明号（Dawn）任务获取的高分辨率地形数据与影像镶嵌图开展研究。研究团队依据观测到的形态结构差异，将谷神星撞击坑划分为四大主要类别：简单型、改造型、过渡型与复杂型。针对谷神星的复杂撞击坑，本研究提出一套精细化分类体系，依据其形态结构特征（如中央峰、坑壁阶地、平坦坑底等）将其划分为Complex I、Complex II与Complex III三个亚类。