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.).