Nathair Facula is a bright region on the surface of

Mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

, located at 36° N, 295.5° W. It was named by the

IAU The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach ...

in 2018. ''Nathair'' is the

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and

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word for

snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

. In the center of the region is an irregular depression with crisp topography, surrounded by a region of subdued features. It is interpreted to be the site of explosive volcanic eruptions. Hollows have formed within the depression.Flute Music
published 16 March 2015. NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington The facula is approximately 270 km wide, although the edges are diffuse. Nathair Facula is located in the Hokusai quadrangle, northeast of the prominent

Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

crater, west of Copland crater, and east of the smaller Neidr Facula.

Views

File:Nathair Facula MESSENGER WAC IGF to RGB.jpg, Approximate color image File:Nathair Facula EN1014443953M.jpg, Oblique view File:Nathair Facula EN0224508427M.jpg, Closeup of center of Nathair Facula File:EN1059620367M Rachvent.map.jpg, Very high-resolution image of the northern rim, showing gullies and evidence of the formation of hollows

References

Surface features of Mercury {{Mercury-planet-stub