Kubrick Mons

{{Infobox feature on celestial object

|name = Kubrick Mons

|image = NH-Charon-Closeup2-20150714 Kubrick.jpg

|image_size =

|caption = Kubrick Mons is a depression with a peak in the middle, shown here in the upper left corner of the inset.

|type = Moated mountain

|location = Vulcan Planitia, Charon

|coordinates = {{coord|3.6|N|30.8|E|globe:charon_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}

|coordinates_footnotes = {{GPN|15736}}

|length =

|width =

|diameter = {{convert|40|km|mi}}

|depth =

|area =

|dimensions =

|peak = {{convert|3|–|4|km|mi|abbr=on}}

|discoverer = New Horizons

|naming =

|eponym = Stanley Kubrick

}}

Kubrick Mons is the name given to the largest of a series of mountain peaks on Pluto's moon Charon that rise out of depressions in the Vulcan Planitia region.{{cite web|url=http://www.space.com/29970-pluto-moon-charon-mountain-photo.html|title=Pluto's Big Moon Charon Has a Bizarre Mountain in a Moat|work=Space.com|date=16 July 2015 |access-date=7 October 2015}}{{cite web|last1=Desch|first1=S.J.|last2=Neveu|first2=M.|title=Differentiation and Cryovolcanism in the Pluto-Charon System|url=http://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/lpsc2016/pdf/1647.pdf|website=USRA Houston|publisher=School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University|access-date=4 October 2016}} The feature was first recorded by the Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI) aboard the New Horizons spacecraft during a flyby on 15 July 2015.

Physical description

Kubrick Mons has a diameter of {{convert|40|km|mi}} and is {{convert|3–4|km|mi}} in height. The feature is surrounded by a moat which has a depth of {{convert|1–2|km|mi}} below the surrounding area.{{cite journal|last1=Moore, J. M.|last2=Spenser, J. R.|last3=Mckinnon, W. B.|last4=Beyer, R. A.|title=The Geology of Charon as Revealed by New Horizons|journal=International Asteroids, Comets, Meteors (ACM) Conference 2017|date=Apr 10, 2017|volume=LUNAR AND PLANETARY SCIENCE AND EXPLORATION|url=https://ntrs.nasa.gov/search.jsp?R=20170009828|access-date=3 April 2018}} It is not currently known how Kubrick Mons formed; however, there is speculation that Kubrick Mons may be a cryovolcano and the depression may be the result of a shrinking chamber of water and ammonia. {{as of|2019|11}} this hypothesis remains unconfirmed.

The mountain was named after film director Stanley Kubrick. Official approval of the name was announced by the International Astronomical Union on 11 April 2018.{{cite web|title=Pluto's Largest Moon, Charon, Gets Its First Official Feature Names|url=https://www.iau.org/news/pressreleases/detail/iau1803/|website=International Astronomical Union|access-date=21 February 2019}} It is sometimes called Charon's {{em|Mountain in a Moat}} or more simply {{em|Moat Mountain}}.

References

Category:Extraterrestrial mountains

Category:Surface features of Charon

Category:Stanley Kubrick