Gaea (crater)

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Color photo made by  Voyager 2 . At this point, Jupiter was on the right. Gaea can be recognized by the bright spots below.

Coordinates: 55 ° 0 ′ 0 ″  N , 35 ° 0 ′ 0 ″  E

Gaea  (also Gaia ) is an impact crater  on  Jupiter's moon  Amalthea .

Its diameter is approximately 80 km and the depth is estimated to be 10–12 km. The approximate coordinates of the center are 55.000000, 35.000000. Gaea was discovered in 1979 in the images of the Voyager 1 spacecraft   and later  photographed in greater detail by  Galileo . Gaea is located near the South Pole on Amalthea.

Gaea lies in the midst of peculiar unnamed bright structures, which are believed to be a facula (similar to Ida Facula or Lyctos Facula ). The size of this bright area is about 25 km.

Naming

The crater was named by the IAU in 1979 after  Gaia, the earth goddess  .

See also

Web links

  • Gaea in the Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature of the IAU (WGPSN) / USGS