Selk (crater)

{{short description|Impact crater on the moon Titan}} {{Infobox feature on celestial object | name = Selk | image = Selk crater on Titan.jpg | caption = A radar image of Selk by the ''Cassini'' probe | location = [[Titan (moon)|Titan]] | type = Impact crater | coordinates = {{coord|7.0|N|199.0|W|globe:titan_type:landmark|display=inline,title}} | diameter = 90 km | eponym = [[Serket]] | discoverer = ''[[Cassini (spacecraft)|Cassini]]'' }}

'''Selk''' is a [[impact crater|crater]] on [[Titan (moon)|Titan]], a moon of Saturn, located at 7°N 199°W. It is a geologically young impact crater that measures approximately {{convert|90|km}} in diameter.<ref>"Geology of the Selk crater region on Titan from Cassini VIMS observations." J.M. Soderblom, R.H. Brown, L.A. Soderblom, J.W. Barnes, R. Jaumann, Stéphane Le Mouélic, Christophe Sotin, K. Stephan, K.H. Baines, B.J. Buratti, R.N. Clark, and [[Phil Nicholson|P.D. Nicholson]]. ''Icarus''. Volume 208, Issue 2, August 2010, Pages 905-912. {{doi|10.1016/j.icarus.2010.03.001}}</ref> It was discovered in 2004 by the [[Cassini–Huygens]] mission during its first Titan flyby.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lorenz |first1=Ralph D. |last2=MacKenzie |first2=Shannon M. |last3=Neish |first3=Catherine D. |last4=Gall |first4=Alice Le |last5=Turtle |first5=Elizabeth P. |last6=Barnes |first6=Jason W. |last7=Trainer |first7=Melissa G. |last8=Werynski |first8=Alyssa |last9=Hedgepeth |first9=Joshua |last10=Karkoschka |first10=Erich |date=2021-02-01 |title=Selection and Characteristics of the Dragonfly Landing Site near Selk Crater, Titan |journal=The Planetary Science Journal |volume=2 |issue=1 |pages=24 |doi=10.3847/PSJ/abd08f |bibcode=2021PSJ.....2...24L |doi-access=free |issn=2632-3338|hdl=10150/662019 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

There is evidence that ice melted into liquid water when the crater formed, and mixed with organic compounds. This interaction may have formed molecules such as [[Amino acid|amino acids]] and other biomolecules.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wakita 脇田 |first1=Shigeru 茂 |last2=Johnson |first2=Brandon C. |last3=Soderblom |first3=Jason M. |last4=Shah |first4=Jahnavi |last5=Neish |first5=Catherine D. |last6=Steckloff |first6=Jordan K. |date=2023-03-01 |title=Modeling the Formation of Selk Impact Crater on Titan: Implications for Dragonfly |journal=The Planetary Science Journal |volume=4 |issue=3 |pages=51 |doi=10.3847/PSJ/acbe40 |arxiv=2302.11330 |bibcode=2023PSJ.....4...51W |doi-access=free |issn=2632-3338}}</ref> This possibility led mission planners to select the dunes to the Southeast of Selk as the initial landing site of the ''[[Dragonfly (Titan space probe)|Dragonfly]]'' mission.<ref>{{cite press release |last1=Hautaluoma |first1=Grey |last2=Johnson |first2=Alana |date=27 June 2019 |title=NASA's Dragonfly Will Fly Around Titan Looking for Origins, Signs of Life |url=https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasas-dragonfly-will-fly-around-titan-looking-for-origins-signs-of-life |agency=[[NASA]] |access-date=2019-08-16}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | doi=10.3847/PSJ/abd08f | title=Selection and Characteristics of the Dragonfly Landing Site near Selk Crater, Titan | year=2021 | last1=Lorenz | first1=Ralph D. | last2=MacKenzie | first2=Shannon M. | last3=Neish | first3=Catherine D. | last4=Gall | first4=Alice Le | last5=Turtle | first5=Elizabeth P. | last6=Barnes | first6=Jason W. | last7=Trainer | first7=Melissa G. | last8=Werynski | first8=Alyssa | last9=Hedgepeth | first9=Joshua | last10=Karkoschka | first10=Erich | journal=The Planetary Science Journal | volume=2 | issue=1 | page=24 | bibcode=2021PSJ.....2...24L | s2cid=233934724 | doi-access=free | hdl=10150/662019 | hdl-access=free }}</ref>

The crater is named after [[Serket]], a goddess in [[Egyptian mythology]], and was formally approved by the [[International Astronomical Union|IAU]] in 2008.<ref>{{cite web |title=Selk |url=https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/14334 |website=Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature |publisher=International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN) |accessdate=15 August 2019}}</ref>

== References == {{reflist}}

[[Category:Impact craters on Saturn's moons]] [[Category:Surface features of Titan (moon)]]