 One of the
most recognizable surface
features on Eros is the boulder-filled,
concave depression at the
southwestern edge of the saddle-shaped
Himeros. When it was first
glimpsed early in NEAR
Shoemaker's orbital mission the
area was informally tagged "Boulderado."
It is shown here in a mosaic of
pictures taken June 14, 2000,
from an orbital altitude of 52
kilometers (32 miles).This region has few
superposed craters and, unlike
the main part of Himeros, few
geologic structures like
curvilinear ridges or troughs.
Instead, "Boulderado"
is covered with the densest
concentrations of boulders on the
asteroid, suggesting that the
craters that must once have
populated the area have either
been buried or eroded by regolith
movement. To honor one of the
giants of planetary science,
Eugene Shoemaker, a formal name
of Shoemaker Regio has been
proposed for this part of Eros.
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