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A crater on Mars has been named after one of the villages worst hit by the 2015 earthquake in Nepal

Wednesday 22nd of June 2016

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The International Astronomical Union has now named a 9.8 km (six mile) wide crater on Mars as Langtang. The researcher behind the move, Tjalling de Haas, said it was “a tribute” to the Nepali village.
Mars crater has been named after one of the villages worst hit by the 2015 earthquake in Nepal. At least 215 people were killed in Langtang, a popular trekking site, when the April 25 quake triggered an avalanche that swamped the village, BBC reports.


The marks on the top of the crater wall probably show the flow of water and below it are ridges which are the remains of former Martian glaciers.
Three other craters on the planet were named Bunnik after the researcher's hometown in the Netherlands, Nqutu after a town in South Africa, and Talu after a city on West Sumatra. The IAU Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature approved the names on June 14.


The crater was named by researcher Tjalling de Haas to pay tribute to the Nepali village. He chose this name because his colleague had worked in this village while studying Himalayan glaciers.
Langtang was a "scientifically important" crater, Dr. de Haas said. "The marks on the top of the crater wall were probably water flows, and below them you can see ridges — the remains of former glaciers."


Langtang village was a popular trekking site and was completely destroyed by an avalanche triggered by April 2016 devastating earthquake.


About IAU




  • IAU is a collection of professional astronomers, at the PhD level and beyond, active in professional education and research in astronomy.




  • Founded: 1919.




  • Headquarters: Paris, France




  • Objective: Promote and safeguard the science of astronomy in all its aspects through international cooperation.




  • It is an internationally recognized authority for assigning designations (names) to celestial bodies (stars, planets, asteroids, etc.) and any surface features on them.



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