Planet Mars | ||
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Eponym Dirk Reuyl, a Dutch-American physicist and astronomer (1906–1972) who made astronomical measurements of the diameter of Mars in the 1940s | ||
Reuyl Crater is a crater in the Aeolis quadrangle of Mars, located at 9.8° south latitude and 193.2° west longitude and is 85.9 km in diameter. This martian feature and was named after Dirk Reuyl, a Dutch-American physicist and astronomer (1906–1972) who made astronomical measurements of the diameter of Mars in the 1940s.
Why are Craters important?
The density of impact craters is used to determine the surface ages of Mars and other solar system bodies. The older the surface, the more craters present. Crater shapes can reveal the presence of ground ice.
The area around craters may be rich in minerals. On Mars, heat from the impact melts ice in the ground. Water from the melting ice dissolves minerals, and then deposits them in cracks or faults that were produced with the impact. This process, called hydrothermal alteration, is a major way in which ore deposits are produced. The area around Martian craters may be rich in useful ores for the future colonization of Mars. Studies on the earth have documented that cracks are produced and that secondary minerals veins are deposited in the cracks. Images from satellites orbiting Mars have detected cracks near impact craters. Great amounts of heat are produced during impacts. The area around a large impact may take hundreds of thousands of years to cool.