cratered

Cratered is an adjective used to describe a surface that is pocked with impact craters or bowl-shaped depressions. In planetary science, cratered terrain typically indicates a surface that has experienced substantial impact bombardment and comparatively little geologic resurfacing since those impacts occurred. The term is most often applied to rocky bodies such as the Moon, Mercury, and numerous regions of Mars, as well as to asteroids and some icy moons.

Most craters form when a meteoroid, asteroid, or comet strikes a surface at hypervelocity. The impact excavates material, creating a transient crater that slides into a more permanent bowl-shaped cavity with features such as a raised rim and, in larger craters, a central peak or terrace structures. Crater morphology varies with scale and target properties; smaller craters are usually simple and bowl-shaped, while larger ones become complex with central peaks, terraced rims, or uplifted rings.

Over time, craters are degraded by processes such as seismic shaking, landslides, volcanic resurfacing, erosion, windblown or icy weathering, and tectonic activity. The balance between crater formation and resurfacing determines whether a region remains heavily cratered or appears relatively smooth. Crater counting—the practice of tallying craters of different sizes—serves as a relative dating method to compare surface ages across bodies.

The term emphasizes a landscape’s history of impact events and helps researchers infer the chronological and geologic evolution of planetary surfaces. A surface described as cratered is generally understood to be older or less geologically active than a smoother counterpart.