Images and data now pouring in from MESSENGER at Mercury

Today the MESSENGER mission held a press briefing to show off some of the first images and other data that are streaming in from the spacecraft, now that it has entered Mercury orbit. Before I get to the more substantial stuff I'll just post my favorite image released today, a dramatically lit view of terrain near the north pole, terrain that hasn't before been viewed by a spacecraft. It's covered with secondaries; there are chains of craters; and the low lighting makes it easy to spot the characteristic undulating ridge of one of Mercury's ubiquitous thrust faults, signs that the entire planet has shrunk.
MESSENGER view of terrain near Mercury's north pole
A wide-angle camera view of terrain near Mercury's north pole, taken on MESSENGER's first orbit, shows an area blanketed by secondary impact craters, craters that formed when ejecta from a nearby, larger impact crashed into the ground. Only the sharp-rimmed craters are "primaries." The view is close to the north pole so the Sun is nearly on the horizon, throwing long shadows and failing to shine into the bottoms of craters. The image covers an area about 84 kilometers square. Credit: NASA / JHUAPL / CIW
Although the camera is capable of capturing images that are 1024 pixels square,

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