The texture used for this model is derived from a mosaic made with the data acquired by the MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging (MESSENGER) Mercury Dual Imaging System (MDIS) instrument.
The texture shows Mercury’s surface in “enhanced color,” a term used to describe a color scheme created to emphasize color differences on Mercury’s surface. This is not what Mercury would look like to the human eye, but rather by applying mathematical analysis to MESSENGER images, color differences on Mercury’s surface can be accentuated beyond those visible to a person.
More information is available at the NASA site Enhanced Color Mercury Map
Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington.
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