Tag Archives: katabatic winds

THEMIS: Polar winds streaming off the ice cap

THEMIS Image of the Day, April 5, 2018. This VIS image shows ‘streamers’ of clouds created by katabatic winds at the north polar cap. Katabatic winds are created by cold air sinking at the pole and then speeding along the … Continue reading

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THEMIS: Dust devil tracks

THEMIS Image of the Day, May 18, 2015. Today’s VIS image shows dust devil tracks in Noachis Terra. The dark tracks show where the whirlwind was in contact with the surface and removed dust to expose the darker rocky surface. … Continue reading

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Spiral troughs in Mars polar caps are born in ‘cyclic steps’

Both Martian polar caps have deep spiral troughs that slice into them for dozens or hundreds of kilometers, but their origin and development has been much debated by scientists. New work by a team of researchers led by Isaac Smith … Continue reading

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Gale’s winds sculpted the Mt. Sharp mound as they built it

The major reason for sending the Mars Science Laboratory rover Curiosity to Gale Crater is the five-kilometer (three-mile) high layered mound, dubbed Mt. Sharp, that looms at the crater’s center. The lowest layers have been altered by water

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Ice cap winds spread polar gypsum

The north polar cap of Mars is surrounded by a vast dune field, about as large as Earth’s Kalahari Desert, that contains extensive deposits of gypsum. The gypsum’s origin has been debated since the mineral was discovered in 2005, yet … Continue reading

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