Thread: What causes Hexagonal Craters?

Originally Posted by Xei

They're not.

You seem to have the denial thing down. Why don't you move on to the backing yourself up stage? Perhaps you'd like to start by refuting (with evidence) the source I linked to that gives an explanation for the fairly common phenomenon of craters forming polygonal shapes.

http://www.planetary.org/blog/article/00000927/
"This study is probably not directly applicable to Saturn."

This seems to be a very obscure area of fluid dynamics with unsurprisingly minimal research.

Perhaps you'd like to start by refuting (with evidence) the source I linked to that gives an explanation for the fairly common phenomenon of craters forming polygonal shapes.

Well Googling seems to suggest that there are some smaller polygonal craters which have been observed on the moon, and it's suggested that these are the results of the local tectonics. But certainly its not a very important effect on the large scale, those highlighted ones don't look convincing on their own, let alone when taking into account the large number of other randomly shaped craters.

Originally Posted by Xaqaria

You seem to have the denial thing down. Why don't you move on to the backing yourself up stage? Perhaps you'd like to start by refuting (with evidence) the source I linked to that gives an explanation for the fairly common phenomenon of craters forming polygonal shapes.

Seriously, what's there to refute? The craters aren't polygonal in any significant sense. What do you want me to do, draw a circle around them, because that's what you've done... (point: that isn't proof)

Neither moon crater is a proper, single crater. They both have been significantly disturbed by other impacts, which have significantly altered their outline. This is like trying to prove an optical illusion... there's no way. I (we) say there is a circular shape, you say otherwise. Leave it at that.

But a point should be made that this isn't proof of anything if there can be such a simple subjective difference. I think my argument is that tricks of the eye cause hexagonal craters (in most cases at least).