A variety of diverse morphological features are present in this image (21 by 5.5 kilometers) located in the southeastern area of the Nili Fossae region and just northeast of Syrtis Major.
This particular region has been studied intensely due to the presence of volcanics from Syrtis Major and impact ejecta from the Isidis Basin. The region is rich in unaltered mafic deposits, in contact with diverse altered deposits rich in clays, carbonates, and sulfates. [More at link]
Sol 4140, September 17, 2015. Mission scientists are scanning the floor of Marathon Valley with the Pancam, looking for exposures of the “reddish banded” rock which has exposures in the valley and up on the rim. This unit may be the rock that was seen to contain phyllosilicates (clay minerals) from orbit. This partial false-color composite by Holger Isenberg shows hints of warm tints at left, as well as traces of a polygonal structure in the bedrock. (Click to enlarge.)
Opportunity raw images, its latest mission status, a location map. and atmospheric opacity, known as tau.
The workings of the Martian winds are visible in this image of sand dunes trapped inside an unnamed crater in southern Terra Cimmeria.
Many of the craters in the southern highlands of Mars contain sand dunes, and HiRISE is still in the process of mapping these dunes and determining how active they are today. So far, the dunes in these craters appear to be a mixed bunch, with some dunes actively advancing while others seem to be frozen in place. This image will be compared… [More at link]
Last week on Mars, afternoon condensate water-ice clouds were abundant over the western hemisphere’s topographic highs. Further south, dust storms and diffuse water-ice clouds continued to develop along the northern boundary of the south polar hood. A large transient dust storm was spotted over central Noachis during the second half of the week. Over the plains of the northern hemisphere, dust… [More at link, including video]
These strange features in Syria Planum are still being widely debated. They have the same general form as transverse aeolian ridges (TARs) elsewhere on Mars; windblown deposits that are common in the Martian tropics. Their height and spacing are similar to the more familiar looking TARs in other places, and they are similarly bright. Unless Nature is perverse… [More at link]
THEMIS Image of the Day, September 17, 2015. The THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. These false color images may reveal subtle variations of the surface not easily identified in a single band image. Today’s false color image shows some of the dunes located on the floor of Pettit Crater.
More THEMIS Images of the Day by geological topic.
Sol 1106, September 16, 2015. In seven frames, the MAHLI imaged an area on the Murray Formation outcrop that was brushed preparatory to drilling. The brushed area lies in the center of the cross and shows faint and incomplete circular lines. (See also MAHLI’s view of a thin, lobed “ridge” in the Murray formation, below) Click to enlarge.
Sol 1106 raw images (from all cameras), and Curiosity’s latest location map.
Layered megablock in Bamberg Crater. Beautiful Mars series.
Sol 1106, September 16, 2015. A three-frame MAHLI composite shows a curiously shaped feature emerging from Murray Formation bedrock that contains light-toned veins. At right, a Hazcam frame from yesterday (Sol 1105) shows the context. Click either image to enlarge.
Sol 1106 raw images (from all cameras), and Curiosity’s latest location map.
Sol 4139, September 15, 2015. Opportunity is examining the target dubbed Pvt. George Gibson, seen above in a pair of Navcam frames. At right is a false-color Pancam image of the target area (by Holger Isenberg). (Click images to enlarge.)
This target forms part of the “reddish banded” outcrops that scientists are investigating to determine if they are related to the phyllosilicate clay minerals detected in Marathon Valley from orbit.
Opportunity raw images, its latest mission status, a location map. and atmospheric opacity, known as tau.
