Astronomy › Section H · The Moon, Mercury, Venus, and Mars › Topic H.2
Impact craters
Craters are the most common landform on the solid worlds of the solar system. Understanding how a fast-moving rock blasts one out, and how quickly craters pile up, turns a cratered surface into a clock.
In this topic
- Scars on every solid world
- Volcanoes or impacts?
- Why craters are round
- How a crater forms
- Worked example: the energy of an impact
- Simple craters, complex craters and basins
- Ejecta, secondaries and rays
- Craters as clocks
- Worked example: reading the early bombardment
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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