Its floor is flooded with volcanic smooth plains material, which could be related to the activity that formed the nearby bright vent known as Nathair Facula.

Amateur astronomer Ronald Dantowitz and his colleagues Scott Teare and Marek Kozubal used the Mt.

Surprisingly, MESSENGER images from Mercury flyby 3 revealed that the small bright feature, seen at the left edge of this image and now known as Nathair Facula, is not an impact crater but more closely resembles a volcanic vent.

A MESSENGER team member corresponded with Mr. Dantowitz and suggested that the name Copland be proposed instead for a large crater nearby.

He agreed, and the International Astronomical Union (IAU) approved the name Copland on March 3, 2010.