Tag Archives: University of Arizona

HiRISE: Troughs with axial ridges in Acidalia Planitia

Posted on April 9, 2018 by rburnham

Troughs with axial ridges in Acidalia Planitia. There are large, hundreds of meters in length, troughs in Acidalia Planitia, with high axial ridges down the center. While they appear fairly bland in Mars Orbital Camera images, we can see better … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Dare to climb

Posted on April 9, 2018 by rburnham

Dare to climb.  These steep slopes in East Coprates Chasma are a rappeller’s delight. Beautiful Mars series.

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Gullies of Matara Crater

Posted on April 6, 2018 by rburnham

Gullies on Martian sand dunes, like these in Matara Crater, have been very active, with many flows in the last ten years. The flows typically occur when seasonal frost is present. Here, we see frost in and around two gullies, … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Crater watchin’ in northeast Syrtis Major

Posted on April 5, 2018 by rburnham

Crater watchin’ in northeast Syrtis Major region. The dunes within the crater are fascinating for their cell shapes, caused by the wind. Beautiful Mars series.

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Formations in context (Or, what is it?)

Posted on April 5, 2018 by rburnham

Some HiRISE images show strange-looking formations. Sometimes it helps to look at Context Camera images to understand the circumstances of a scene—like this cutout from CTX 033783_1509—which here shows an impact crater with a central peak, and a collapse depression … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Strata always have a story

Posted on April 4, 2018 by rburnham

Strata always have a story. This area is located within the massive Valles Marineris canyon system, and was suggested to monitor for recurring slope lineae on a slope to the south, but we thought the gorgeous bedrock deserved to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Three channels exiting a crater lake

Posted on April 4, 2018 by rburnham

This image shows a roundish crater with three channels breaching the rim and extending to the south. The crater has been filled by sediments and may have been an ancient lake. When the water began to overtop the crater rim, … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: The moving sands of Lobo Vallis

Posted on April 3, 2018 by rburnham

Bright ripples line the topography in this region, formed within a past climate. Dark dunes and sand streaks (composed of basaltic sand) have moved and filled lower areas, pushed by more recent winds from the top towards the bottom of … Continue reading →

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Wonderfully eye-like

Posted on April 3, 2018 by rburnham

Wonderfully eye-like. Beautiful Mars series.

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

HiRISE: Mid-latitude crater with a spot in the middle

Posted on April 2, 2018 by rburnham

A mid-latitude crater with a spot in the middle. From orbit, the spot looks black, but we can see in the enhanced color closeup that it’s darker (basaltic?) material on top of the lighter dunes. Beautiful Mars series.

Posted in Reports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off