Tag Archives: north polar sand sea

THEMIS: Edge of the great northern sand sea

Posted on March 12, 2018 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 12, 2018. This VIS image of Olympia Undae was collected during north polar summer. The dunes are now completely frost free and are dark in color due to being made of basaltic sand. The … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Amidst the sea of sand

Posted on March 9, 2018 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 9, 2018. This VIS image of Olympia Undae was collected during north polar spring. The crests of the dunes and other surfaces are light colored, indicative of a frost covering. The density of dunes … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Dunes don’t climb hills (very far)

Posted on March 8, 2018 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 8, 2018. This VIS image of Olympia Undae was collected during north polar spring. The crests of the dunes and other surfaces are light colored, indicative of a frost covering. At the top right … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Defrosting dunes in Olympia Undae

Posted on March 7, 2018 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 7, 2018. This VIS image of Olympia Undae was collected early in north polar spring. The crests of the dunes are light colored, indicative of a frost covering. As the season changes into summertime, … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Patterns in the sands of Olympia Undae

Posted on March 6, 2018 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 6, 2018. This VIS image of Olympia Undae was collected early in north polar spring. The crests of the dunes are light colored, indicative of a frost covering. As the season changes into summertime, … Continue reading →

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THEMIS: Waves in the north polar sand sea

Posted on March 5, 2018 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, March 5, 2018. Olympia Undae is a vast dune field in the north polar region of Mars. It consists of a broad sand sea or erg that partly rings the north polar cap from about … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Defrosting dunes

Posted on December 7, 2017 by rburnham

Defrosting dunes. They’re melting! They’re melting! Beautiful Mars series.

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THEMIS: Marching dunes of Siton Undae

Posted on September 11, 2017 by rburnham

THEMIS Image of the Day, September 11, 2017. Siton Undae is a large dune field located in the northern plains near Escorial Crater. Siton Undae is west of the crater and is one of three dune fields near the crater. … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Dunes in northern summer

Posted on January 31, 2017 by rburnham

This dune field formed near the base of the North Polar cap. Dunes require a source of loose particulate material to form. The source of the northern dune fields around the polar cap may be from the layers of dusty … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: North polar gypsum dunes

Posted on July 18, 2016 by rburnham

These sand dunes are a type of aeolian bedform and partly encircle the Martian North Pole in a region called Olympia Undae. Unlike most of the sand dunes on Mars that are made of the volcanic rock basalt, these are … Continue reading →

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