Galle (Martian crater)
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| Galle | |
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| Coordinates | 51.2° S, 30.9° W |
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| Diameter | 230.0 km |
| Eponym | Johann Gottfried Galle |
Galle is a crater on Mars. It is located on the eastern rim of the huge impact basin Argyre Planitia. It is named after the astronomer Johann Gottfried Galle.
Galle is often known as the "happy face crater" because the illusion of a smiley is created by a semicircular mountain range and two smaller craters within the main crater. The formation was first photographed by Viking Orbiter 1.
The Galle crater appears in Alan Moore's graphic novel Watchmen.
A second "happy face crater", smaller than Galle and located at 45.1°S, 55.0°W in Nereidum Montes, was discovered by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on January 28, 2008.[1]
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