Possible origin of radar bright craters on Venus

✍ Scribed by A. P. Krivtsov; O. N. Rzhiga; A. I. Sidorenko; V. P. Sinilo; A. I. Zakharov

• Publisher: Springer Netherlands
• Year: 1990
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 279 KB
• Volume: 50-51
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1573-0794
• DOI: 10.1007/bf00142405

✦ Synopsis

Radar images of Venus' surface, obtained from the Venera 15 and 16 spacecraft and from the Earth, show many impact craters that are radar bright compared with their surroundings. It is demonstrated in this report that this phenomenon cannot be caused by higher surface roughness of meteorite impact area only. Obviously. enhanced reflectivity is required as well. It is supposed that the necessary enlargement of reflectivity might be caused by raised conductivity of surface material in the impact area. if the meteorite is related by chemical composition to iron ur iron-stony types.