Han Kan (crater)

Han Kan

MESSENGER NAC image of Han Kan, slightly right of center
Feature type	Central-peak impact crater
Location	Bach quadrangle, Mercury
Coordinates	72°08′S146°24′W / 72.13°S 146.40°W / -72.13; -146.40
Diameter	50.0 km (31.1 mi)
Eponym	Han Gan

Han Kan is a crater on Mercury. It has a diameter of 50 kilometers. ^[1] Its name was adopted by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) in 1985. Han Kan is named for the Chinese painter Han Gan, who lived from 720 to 780. ^[2] The crater was first imaged by Mariner 10 in 1974. ^[3]

On the eastern floor of Han Kan is a dark spot of low reflectance material (LRM), closely associated with hollows. ^[4]

Han Kan has an extensive ray system extending for hundreds of kilometers.

• 
  Mariner 10 image with Han Kan at center
• 
  Exaggerated color image by MESSENGER with Han Kan at center
• 
  Han Kan (bottom center), Van Gogh (upper left), and Dickens (right) craters

References

1. Moore, Patrick (2000). The Data Book of Astronomy. Institute of Physics Publishing. ISBN   0-7503-0620-3.
2. "Han Kan". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. NASA . Retrieved 7 June 2022.
3. Davies, M. E.; Dwornik, S. E.; Gault, D. E.; Strom, R. G. (1978). Atlas of Mercury. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. pp. 1–128. ISBN   978-1-114-27448-8. Special Publication SP-423.
4. Zhiyong Xiao, Robert G. Strom, David T. Blewett, Paul K. Byrne, Sean C. Solomon, Scott L. Murchie, Ann L. Sprague, Deborah L. Domingue, Jörn Helbert, 2013. Dark spots on Mercury: A distinctive low-reflectance material and its relation to hollows. Journal of Geophysical Research Planets. doi.org/10.1002/jgre.20115