Tag Archives: spiders

HiRISE: The enduring charm of spiders

Posted on December 11, 2018 by rburnham

Araneiform terrain (colloquially: spider-like terrain) is located in the south polar region of Mars and evolves in appearance over the spring and summer. In the season shown here, the thin bright lines on the surface (the spider legs) are troughs … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Thousands of spiders on Mars

Posted on September 20, 2018 by rburnham

As part of the Planet Four citizen science effort, volunteers searched Context Camera images for possible new locations on Mars with “spiders,” or features with radial troughs from which fans emanate in the springtime. We planned this HiRISE image over … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Jamming with the ‘spiders’ from Mars

Posted on July 12, 2018 by rburnham

During winter at the South Pole of Mars, a carbon dioxide ice cap covers the region and as the sun returns in the spring, “spiders” begin to emerge from the landscape. But these aren’t actual spiders. We call it “araneiform … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Spider formations in crater

Posted on April 25, 2018 by rburnham

Spider formations in crater. Of course, these aren’t actual spiders, but that’s the name we give to these formations, called “araneiform.” The spiders here would be very unusual at northern latitudes. Seasonal series of pictures will allow us to compare … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Tiny spiders off south polar layered deposits

Posted on September 27, 2017 by rburnham

Tiny spiders off south polar layered deposits. Beautiful Mars series.

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HiRISE: Spider terrain

Posted on July 19, 2017 by rburnham

Spider terrain. Beautiful Mars series.

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HiRISE: Immature spider terrain

Posted on April 17, 2017 by rburnham

Immature spider terrain — Completely in need of adult supervision, obviously. Beautiful Mars series.

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HiRISE: How gas carves channels

Posted on January 25, 2017 by rburnham

A layer of dry ice covers the South Polar layered deposits every winter. In the spring, gas created from heating of the dry ice escapes through ruptures in the overlying seasonal ice, entraining material from the ground below. The gas … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Wide, branching channels

Posted on January 11, 2017 by rburnham

Southern spring on Mars brings sublimation of the seasonal dry ice polar cap. Gas trapped under the seasonal ice sheet carves channels on its way to escaping to the atmosphere. At this site, the channels are wider than we see … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Spiders on mounds

Posted on December 23, 2016 by rburnham

This terrain looks like lumpy sediment on top of patterned ground. The lumpy sediment is likely just loosely consolidated because it is covered with spidery channels. This landform is uniquely Martian, formed in the spring as seasonal dry ice turns … Continue reading →

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