Michelangelo Quadrangle Is 12th of 15 Quadrangles of Mercurian Surface

Summary: Michelangelo Quadrangle is the 12th of 15 quadrangles of the Mercurian surface and covers middle latitudes longitudinally from 90 to 180 degrees.

Map of Michelangelo Quadrangle covers the entirety of the midlatitude area, in accordance with complete photographic coverage by Mariner 10, and includes about 10 degrees of longitude of western adjacent H-13 (Neruda) Quadrange, with notation "Solitudo Persephones Albedo Province (H-13)" at 180 to about 190 degrees west and notation "area of darkness" at 190 to 195 degrees west; Geologic Map of the Michelangelo Quadrangle of Mercury (1984) by Paul D. Spudis and James G. Prosser, prepared on behalf of the Planetary Geology Program, Planetary Division, Office of Space Science, National Aeronautics and Space Administration: via U.S. Geological Service's Publications Warehouse

Michelangelo Quadrangle is the 12th of 15 quadrangles of the Mercurian surface, and its map covers the Swift Planet's middle latitudes of 21 degrees south to 66 degrees south latitude, from 90 to 180 degrees west longitude.

As the 12th of Mercury's 15 quadrangles, Michelangelo Quadrangle has the letter-number designation of H-12 or H12. H denotes Hermes, Greek mythology's equivalent of Roman mythology's Mercurius.

Discovery Quadrangle's provisional name, Solitudo Promethei, references a dark region on Mercury's surface. Greek French astronomer Eugène Michel Antoniadi (March 1, 1870-Feb. 10, 1944) placed Solitudo Promethei in the southern hemisphere's middle-to-polar latitudes, between 60 and 70 degrees south latitude, on the map of Mercury's albedo features in his guide, La Planète Mercure, published in 1934 and translated into English by English amateur astronomer Sir Patrick Moore (March 4, 1923-Dec. 9, 2012) in 1974 (figure 5, page 26). Solitudo Promethei ("Desert of Prometheus") references pre-Olympian, Titan god of fire Prometheus (Ancient Greek: Προμηθεύς), who incurs the wrath of Zeus, king of Olympian gods, by giving fire as a civilizing power to humans. Hermes acts as messenger of the gods by visiting Prometheus, chained to a rock as Zeus-ordered punishment.

The names of Mercury's quadrangles conventionally reflect prominent local features. Michelangelo Quadrangle's namesake is Michelangelo Crater. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has selected the theme of names of historically significant artists, authors, musicians and painters for Mercury's craters. The crater's name, approved in 1979, honors High Renaissance architect, painter and sculptor Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (March 6, 1475-Feb. 18, 1564).

Michelangelo Crater is centered at minus 44.92 degrees south latitude, 109.69 degrees west longitude, according to the IAU's U.S. Geological Survey Astrogeology Science Center-maintained Gazetter of Planetary Nomenclature. The southern hemisphere crater registers northernmost and southernmost latitudes of minus 42.2 degrees south and minus 47.6 degrees south, respectively. It records easternmost and westernmost longitudes of 105.88 degrees west and 113.5 degrees west, respectively. Michelangelo Crater's diameter spans 230 kilometers.

Michelangelo Crater is located in eastern central Michelangelo Quadrangle. Its nearest named eastern neighbor, Sūr Dās Crater, is located to the east-southeast. The crater's name, approved in 1979, honors 16th-century Hindu poet and Krishna devotee Sūr Dās (Devanagiri: सूरदास).

Sūr Dās Crater is centered at minus 46.98 degrees south latitude, 93.57 degrees west longitude. The southern hemisphere crater establishes its northernmost and southernmost latitudes at minus 45.44 degrees south and minus 48.51 south, respectively. It posts easternmost and westernmost longitudes of 91.38 degrees west and 95.76 degrees west, respectively. Sūr Dās Crater has a diameter of 131 kilometers.

Michelangelo Quadrangle's southern neighbor, Hawthorne Crater, lies to the southwest. The crater's name, approved in 1979, honors American novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne (July 4, 1804-May 19, 1864).

Hawthorne Crater is centered at minus 51.31 degrees south latitude, 115.34 degrees west longitude. The southern hemisphere crater obtains northernmost and southernmost latitudes of minus 49.90 degrees south and minus 52.71 degrees south, respectively. It marks its easternmost and westernmost longitudes at 113.09 degrees west and 117.59 degrees west, respectively. Hawthorne Crater's diameter measures 120 kilometers.

Michelangelo Crater's western neighbor, Giambologna Crater, lies to the west-northwest. The crater's name, approved Dec 16, 2013, honors Italy-based, Flemish late Renaissance sculptor Jean Boulogne (1529-Aug. 14, 1608), known as Giambologna. The California-based Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) described Giambologna Crater as a ". . . lovely, fresh, complex crater with a crescent-shaped central peak . . ." in the NASA field center's online Photojournal post for Jan. 8, 2014, "Mercury in Bronze." A terraced western wall and an impact melt pond-covered eastern floor distinguish Giambologna Crater.

Giambologna Crater is centered at minus 42.58 degrees south latitude, 124.11 degrees west longitude. The southern hemisphere crater's northernmost and southernmost latitudes extend to minus 41.78 degrees south and minus 43.38 degrees south, respectively. Its easternmost and westernmost longitudes touch 123.02 degrees west and 125.21 degrees west, respectively. Giambologna Crater has a diameter of 69 kilometers.

Michelangelo Crater's northern neighbor, Ives Crater, lies to the north-northwest. The crater's name, approved in 1979, honors American modernist composer Charles Edward Ives (Oct. 20, 1874-May 19, 1954).

Ives Crater is centered at minus 32.87 degrees south latitude, 111.99 degrees west longitude. The southern hemisphere crater's northernmost and southernmost latitudes occur at minus 32.66 degrees south and minus 33.08 degrees south, respectively. Its easternmost and westernmost longitudes reach 111.74 degrees west and 112.24 degrees west, respectively. Ives Crater has a diameter of 18 kilometers.

Heavily-cratered Michelangelo Quadrangle shares borders with five neighbors. Beethoven (H-7) and Tolstoj (H-8) quadrangles touch Michelangelo Quadrangle's northern borders. Discovery Quadrangle (H-11) shares Michelangelo Quadrangle's eastern border. The southern polar region's Bach Quadrangle (H-15) neighbors along Michelangelo Quadrangle's southern border. Neruda Quadrangle (H-13) is contiguous with Michelangelo Quadrangle's western border.

The takeaways for Michelangelo Quadrangle as the 12th of 15 quadrangles of the Mercurian surface are that the southern middle-latitude quadrangle's namesake, Michelangelo Crater, honors 16th-century High Renaissance architect, painter and sculptor Michelangelo Buonarroti; that Michelangelo Crater occurs in the heavily-cratered quadrangle's eastern central region; and that the quadrangle's five neighbors are Beethoven and Tolstoj quadrangles to the north, Discovery Quadrangle to the east, Bach Quadrangle to the south and Neruda Quadrangle to the west.

Detail of Map of the H-12 (Michelangelo) Quadrangle of Mercury shows the quadrangle's namesake, Michelangelo Crater, with Ives, Sur Das, Hawthorne and Giambologna as nearest named northern, eastern, southern and western neighbors, respectively; credit NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington/USGS: courtesy IAU/USGS Astrogeology Science Center's Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Map of Michelangelo Quadrangle covers the entirety of the midlatitude area, in accordance with complete photographic coverage by Mariner 10, and includes about 10 degrees of longitude of western adjacent H-13 (Neruda) Quadrange, with notation "Solitudo Persephones Albedo Province (H-13)" at 180 to about 190 degrees west and notation "area of darkness" at 190 to 195 degrees west; Geologic Map of the Michelangelo Quadrangle of Mercury (1984) by Paul D. Spudis and James G. Prosser, prepared on behalf of the Planetary Geology Program, Planetary Division, Office of Space Science, National Aeronautics and Space Administration: via U.S. Geological Service's Publications Warehouse @ https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/i1659

Detail of Map of the H-12 (Michelangelo) Quadrangle of Mercury shows the quadrangle's namesake, Michelangelo Crater, with Ives, Sur Das, Hawthorne and Giambologna as nearest named northern, eastern, southern and western neighbors, respectively; credit NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington/USGS: courtesy IAU/USGS Astrogeology Science Center's Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/images/H-12.pdf

For further information:

Antoniadi, E.M. (Eugène Michel). La Planète Mercure et la Rotation des Satellites. Paris, France: Gauthier-Villars, 1934.

Davies, Merton E.; Stephen E. Dwornik; Donald E. Gault; and Robert G. Strom. Atlas of Mercury. Special Publication SP-423. Prepared for the Office of Space Sciences. Washington DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scientific and Technical Information Office, 1978.
Available @ https://history.nasa.gov/SP-423/

Davies, Merton E.; Stephen E. Dwornik; Donald E. Gault; and Robert G. Strom. "H-12 Michelangelo Quadrangle." Atlas of Mercury: 108-115. Special Publication SP-423. Prepared for the Office of Space Sciences. Washington DC: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Scientific and Technical Information Office, 1978.
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Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Page/Categories

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Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/15191

International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Hawthorne.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > Mercury. Last updated Oct. 11, 2016.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/1548

International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Ives.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > Mercury. Last updated Oct. 11, 2016.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/2761

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Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/3881

International Astronomical Union (IAU) / U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. “Sūr Dās.” USGS Astrogeology Science Center > Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature > Nomenclature > Mercury. Last updated Oct. 14, 2016.
Available @ https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/5804

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U.S. Geological Survey. Shaded Relief Map of the Michelangelo Quadrangle of Mercury (Solitudo Lycaonis Albedo Province). IMAP 1029 H-7. Atlas of Mercury 1:5,000,000 Topographic Series. Prepared on behalf of the Planetology Programs Office, National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Reston VA: U.S. Geological Survey, 1977.
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