Streaks of swirling pastel colors mark eroded, windswept bedrock within a large crater on Mars in this HiRISE image from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The enhanced colors highlight the differences in surface texture…the original RGB image in approximate true-color can be seen here. The full map-projected enhanced color image of the region can be found…
Tag: HiRISE
Diagonal Dunes
Symmetrical dune ridges line up within the basin of a Martian crater in this HiRISE image from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, taken on December 28, 2009. Rocks and boulders line the crater floor between them. With the MRO’s computers now back online observation of the Martian surface can resume in full effect, providing us with…
Follow the Dotted Line
A dotted line marks the path of a large boulder that has bounced down the inner slope of this 1-km-wide crater in this image from the HiRISE camera, taken on November 12, 2006. The boulder can be seen where it came to rest among the sand dunes on the crater’s floor. See the original release…
Back in Action
“I know everything hasn’t been quite right with me. But I can assure you now, very confidently, that it’s going to be all right again.” This mesmerizing video montage showing beautiful high-resolution views of Martian landscapes opens with the fortunate foreshadowing of today’s news that the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has resumed full operations since being…
Southern Dunes
Here’s an exceptionally beautiful image taken by the HiRISE camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter showing rippling dunes within a crater on Mars’ southern hemisphere. The way the dunes are lit reminds me of a Salvador Dali painting, the central area reminiscent of the lower part of a human face. The brightest areas are…
Written in Stone
This image from the HiRISE high-resolution camera on board the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) shows multiple layers of exposed sedimentary rock on Mars in a region known as Arabia Terra. Referred to as “cyclic bedding” by geologists, this pattern of layering is caused by repeated fluctuations in theĀ amount of sediment available to create new rock…
Can’t Catch Me!
Windswept Martian dunes create a somewhat humanoid, running gingerbread-man figure in this image from the HiRISE camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The dunes reside within a crater in the southern hemisphere of Mars. This week, the University of Arizona released thousands of new images from their HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) observations, taken…
Gully Gee…
One of thousands of new images released on September 2 from the University of Arizona’s HiRISE project, this amazingly detailed image shows the dramatic effects of erosion on the steep sides of Hale Crater on Mars. Whether or not these channels were caused by liquid water or a dry process is still under investigation. It’s…
Revisiting Victoria
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this image of Victoria Crater on July 18, 2009, with the onboard HiRISE high-definition camera. Victoria Crater was the site of the Opportunity rover’s 2006-2007 investigation. Craters like these are great targets for the rover team because the exposed rock along their edges offers valuable information about Mars’ geologic history….
Shifting Sands
Serpentine dunes etch the polar sands of Mars in this image from the HiRISE camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. See the original release here. The MRO was 194 miles above the surface when it took this photo. Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
Devils’ Causeways
Like a child’s random scribblings, the tracks of countless dust devils trace dark swirls across the surface of Mars in a region called Russell Crater. Dust devils ā caused by surface air heated during the day rising upwards in spinning columns ā are extremely common on Mars and pick up the thin Martian sand easily,…
An Icy Web
Ā The veinous texture seen here is part of the south polar region on Mars, imaged by the HiRISE hi-resolution camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Receding carbon dioxide ice, melting during the ongoing spring months, creating the polygonal shapes separated by sinuous ridges. This is known as “spider” terrain. The dark marks are caused…
Lights in the Dark 