Tag Archives: north polar layered deposits

HiRISE: Avalanche season

Posted on September 3, 2019 by rburnham

Every spring the sun shines on the side of the stack of layers at the North Pole of Mars known as the north polar layered deposits. The warmth destabilizes the ice and blocks break loose. When they reach the bottom … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: North polar layers and sand dunes

Posted on July 23, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, July 23, 2019. Today’s VIS image shows part of the north polar cap, as well as sand dunes located on the floor of a polar trough. The north polar cap is surrounded by numerous dune … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Layers in the north polar ice cap

Posted on July 22, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, July 22, 2019. Millions of years of alternating seasons have created the north polar cap. Ice is laid down during the winter and dust coats the ice in summer. The ice/dust cycle creates layers as … Continue reading →

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Orbital changes drive deposition of south polar layered deposits

Posted on July 10, 2019 by rburnham

[Editor’s note: From a paper by Patricio Becerra and seven co-authors recently published in Geophysical Research Letters.] Timescales of the Climate Record in the South Polar Ice Cap of Mars • Patterns in the stratigraphy of Mars’ south polar ice … Continue reading →

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North polar layered deposits vary strongly in dust and composition

Posted on July 3, 2019 by rburnham

[Editor’s note: From a paper by Daniel Lalich and two co-authors recently published in the Journal of Geophysical Research.] Radar Reflectivity as a Proxy for the Dust Content of Individual Layers in the Martian North Polar Layered Deposits • Radar … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Still life with an impact crater

Posted on May 31, 2019 by rburnham

Still life with an impact crater. Ice fill within a crater in the north polar layered deposits (NPLD) may be a site where accumulation could be observed, helping to settle a long-term problem in Mars polar science: are the NPLD … Continue reading →

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Multiple former ice caps lie under the northern cap

Posted on May 22, 2019 by rburnham

Scientists have discovered remnants of ancient ice sheets buried in sand a mile beneath Mars’s north pole, they report in a new study. The findings show conclusive evidence of the waxing and waning of polar ice on the red planet … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Polar cap’s edge in false color

Posted on May 22, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, May 22, 2019. Today’s false-color image shows the margin between the north polar cap and the surrounding plains (lower right). The polar cap was created by alternating layers of ice and dust, deposited over millions … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Megadunes in Hyperborei Cavi

Posted on April 25, 2019 by rburnham

Megadunes in Hyperborei Cavi. A cavus is an irregular steep-sided depression usually in arrays or clusters. Plus: MEGADUNES! HiRISE Picture of the Day archive. [More at links]

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THEMIS: North polar ice cap in false color

Posted on April 18, 2019 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, April 18, 2019. The polar caps of Mars were deposited over millions of years. Seasonal depositions of ice and dust have created layer upon layer of material. In this false color image the white and … Continue reading →

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