Tag Archives: University of Arizona

HiRISE: When the lighting is just right

Posted on March 15, 2019 by rburnham

When the lighting is just right. Almost all of our images are taken in the Martian afternoon, around 3 p.m., and sometimes the lighting conditions make a particularly striking image. These are layered sediments in east Melas Chasma. HiRISE Picture … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Overlapping rims of craters

Posted on March 14, 2019 by rburnham

Overlapping rims of craters. This image is, literally, of the overlapping part on the eastern side, so it might not be obvious there are two craters here. Nonetheless, our objective is to observe the elevation change in the craters along with … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Uncommon clay

Posted on March 13, 2019 by rburnham

Uncommon clay. There are some uncommon clays in this sedimentary plain, as first detected in low resolution by the OMEGA instrument on the Mars Express Orbiter. Note the tight cluster of impacts. This image is in the Terra Cimmeria region … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Streaking on Mars

Posted on March 12, 2019 by rburnham

Streaking on Mars. Wind streaking, that is. Here’s the suggester’s rationale for acquiring this image: “There’s a field of two-tailed bright wind streaks here that are really neat. They seem unique to the area. It would be nice to get … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: A margin of lava

Posted on March 11, 2019 by rburnham

A margin of lava. This lava margin in Cerberus Palus is part of the Athabasca Valles flow. There are also lava coils in this region, something we did not know existed on Mars until HiRISE took an image. The lava … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Layers in Meridiani

Posted on March 8, 2019 by rburnham

Layers in Meridiani. Despite the numerous data gaps with this observation, we can still get a closer look at the layers in Meridiani Planum. The hematite we find in this region is part of a layered sedimentary rock formation about … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Colorful Mawrth Vallis

Posted on March 7, 2019 by rburnham

Mawrth Vallis is a place on Mars that has fascinated scientists because of the clays and other hydrated minerals detected from orbit. In this image, the enhanced black colors are most likely basaltic sands and rocks, while the green, yellow, … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Colorful impact ejecta in Ladon Valles

Posted on March 6, 2019 by rburnham

This image covers the western portion of a well-preserved (recent) impact crater in Ladon Basin. Ladon is filled by diverse materials including chemically-altered sediments and unaltered lava, so the impact event ejected and deposited a wide range of elements. This … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: Gullies in Galle

Posted on March 5, 2019 by rburnham

This image was taken of the hills that resulted from uplifted rocks due to an impact that formed the 230-kilometer diameter Galle Crater. These hills form a segment of a circle known as a “peak ring” and this particular formation … Continue reading →

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HiRISE: The slow charm of brain terrain

Posted on March 4, 2019 by rburnham

You are staring at one of the unsolved mysteries on Mars. This surface texture of interconnected ridges and troughs, referred to as “brain terrain” is found throughout the mid-latitude regions of Mars. (This image is in Protonilus Mensae.) This bizarrely … Continue reading →

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