Harakhtes (crater)

Lore & Background

Harakhtes is named after Horakhty, a form of the Ancient Egyptian god Horus meaning 'Horus of the Horizon,' representing the eastern horizon where the Sun rises. The IAU approved the name in 2000, following its rule that craters on Ganymede are named after deities, heroes, or places from ancient Middle Eastern mythologies. The crater lies at the eastern edge of Galileo Regio, an ancient, rugged terrain, with the younger Xibalba Sulcus immediately to the east. The surrounding region is saturated with impact craters and palimpsests, including Kulla crater to the west and Bigeh Facula palimpsest to the southeast. Harakhtes is situated on the hemisphere of Ganymede that permanently faces away from Jupiter due to the moon's synchronous rotation, meaning an observer at the crater would never see Jupiter above the horizon.

Reader's Guide

Harakhtes is significant as a bright dome crater that provides insight into the geological history of Ganymede. Its bright floor contrasts sharply with the dark, ancient terrain of Galileo Regio, yet it lacks bright rays, similar to craters in the Enki Catena chain that formed on dark terrain. This suggests that the impact that created Harakhtes excavated and mixed dark material into the ejecta, making it difficult to distinguish from the background. The crater's central dome is a morphological feature typical of icy moons, formed when impact heat melts subsurface ice; as the meltwater refreezes and expands, it fractures the floor, creating a pit that can uplift into a dome. Harakhtes was first imaged clearly by Voyager 2 in July 1979, with later images from the Galileo orbiter (June 1997) providing the best available views. The New Horizons spacecraft imaged it in February 2007 from a distance, making it conspicuous due to its brightness. Future exploration by the European Space Agency's Juice mission, expected to enter low polar orbit around Ganymede in July 2031, is anticipated to obtain much higher-resolution images of Harakhtes.

Did You Know?

• Harakhtes is 108 kilometres (67 mi) in diameter.
• The crater is named after Horakhty, a form of the Egyptian god Horus representing the eastern horizon.
• The best available images of Harakhtes were taken by the Galileo spacecraft in June 1997.