 Coniraya (center right, overlain by three smaller craters). Gaue is at lower right, cut-off by the edge of the image. | |
| Feature type | Impact crater |
|---|---|
| Location | Coniraya Quadrangle, Ceres |
| Coordinates | 39°52′N65°31′E / 39.86°N 65.51°E [1] |
| Diameter | ~135 kilometres (84 mi) [1] |
| Depth | ~500 m [2] |
| Discoverer | Dawn |
| Eponym | Coniraya Viracocha, Incan lunar deity |
Coniraya is a large, shallow impact crater on the dwarf planet Ceres. It is the namesake for the Coniraya Quadrangle. [3]
The crater is named after the Incan lunar and fertility deity, Coniraya Viracocha (Kon Iraya Wiraqocha), who came to earth at Huarochirí (Waruchiri), and created villages, terraced fields and irrigation canals. The name was officially approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) on 3 July 2015. [1]
Coniraya is an unusually shallow crater; despite having a diameter of roughly 135 kilometres (84 miles), it is only 500 metres (1,600 feet) deep. This is in contrast to the neighboring crater Vinotonus, which is similar in size and age yet ten times deeper. The shallow depth of Coniraya may have been caused by viscous relaxation, though only if Ceres's crust at the impact site was unusually enriched in water ice. The impact which created Coniraya was caused by a large body travelling an unusually low speed. [2] Coniraya is estimated to be approximately 1.3 billion years old despite its degraded state. [3]
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Yalode is the second-largest confirmed crater on Ceres, after Kerwan. It is adjacent to another large crater, Urvara and serves as the namesake for the Yalode Quadrange. Yalode named after the Dahomeyan (Fon) deity of the yam harvest, Yalodé; the name Yalode was officially approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) on 3 July 2015.
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The geology of Ceres is the scientific study of the surface, crust, and interior of the dwarf planet Ceres. It seeks to understand and describe Ceres' composition, landforms, evolution, and physical properties and processes. The study draws on fields such as geophysics, remote sensing, geochemistry, geodesy, and cartography.
Achita is a large impact crater on the dwarf planet Ceres. The crater is named after Achita, a Nigerian god of agriculture. The crater was imaged as part of NASA's Dawn mission. The probe showed that Achita has mass-wasting ridges on the floor and is the fourth oldest crater on Ceres having been formed 570 million years ago.
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Sintana is a large central peak crater in the Southern Hemisphere of the dwarf planet Ceres, located at 44.21° S, 76.4 ° E. It has a diameter of 58 km, hosting a central peak. The crater is named after the deity of the Kogi people of northern Colombia who produced fertile black earth. The name Sintana was officially adopted by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) on 3 July 2015. It is the namesake of the Sintana Quadrangle.
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