The Caloris Basin, a Huge Circular Region on Mercury Surrounded

question 186

Multiple Choice

The Caloris Basin, a huge circular region on Mercury surrounded by rings of mountains, appears to have been produced by

• A) the impact of a massive object in the early phases of the planet's formation, soon after the initial cratering period.
• B) successive expansion and contraction of the planet's surface by intense solar heating and severe cooling as the planet rotated, causing buckling in a similar way to the formation of the North American Rocky Mountains or the South American Andes.
• C) wind erosion from huge atmospheric storms, similar to enormous hurricanes on Earth.
• D) the eruption of a large and long-lived volcano that formed the mountains in a similar manner to the formation of the Hawaiian Islands on Earth.

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Definitions:

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