Mars: Stairs, Polygons, Dunes and Troughs


	Mars: Stairs, Polygons, Dunes and Troughs
JohnWaterman
8-2-2008 1:54 AM
418 views
tags:
astronomy, hirise, mars, planets, solar system
1 Comment |
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8-2-2008 10:20 PM
Kelika
It almost looks like a pool of water with ripples on the surface.
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<div style="margin: 12px 0px; font-family: arial; color: #333333; background: #ffffff; border: solid 4px #e5e5e5; width: 100%; clear: left;"><div class="CM_CTB_Content_Wrap" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;background-color: #ffffff;"><div style="border-bottom: solid 1px #dcdcdc; white-space: nowrap; margin-bottom: 8px; background-color: #eeeeee ;background-image: url(http://clipmarks.com/images/source-bg.gif); background-repeat: repeat-x; height: 24px; line-height: 24px; vertical-align: middle; padding-bottom: 4px; color: #666666; font-size: 10px;" ><a href="http://clipmarks.com/clip-to-blog/" title="see clips that are hot right now"><img src="http://content.clipmarks.com/blog_embed/840bce20-fa93-46fd-a14b-0b52aedfe495/06BBAF26-9B13-4307-B704-846AE6C62D51/" alt="" width="19" height="19" border="0" style="vertical-align: middle; margin: 0px 4px; display: inline; border: none; float:none;" /></a>clipped from <a title="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/" href="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/" style="font-size: 11px;">www.universetoday.com</a></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/"><div align="center"><img src="http://content9.clipmarks.com/blog_cache/www.universetoday.com/img/7E1B96A4-4FEC-4BF0-A514-67F44A542C3B" alt="Stair-Stepped Mounds in Meridiani Planum.   Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona" /></div></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">Meridiani Planum on <A rel="external" title="" class="alinks_links" href="http://www.universetoday.com/guide-to-space/mars/">Mars</A>, where the Mars Rover Opportunity has been traversing the past four plus years, is not just covered with flat, endless plains.  Of course, Opportunity has been entering and studying a few of the craters in the region.  Here's a crater in Meridiani that's a whopper</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">This crater is so large that the HiRISE image is entirely within it, and the crater rim is not visible.  The most prominent feature is layered sedimentary rocks that look like a grand stairway.  These rocks have been eroded, most likely by wind, or possibly flowing water.</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">
<A href="http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/index.php"></A><A href="http://hirise-pds.lpl.arizona.edu/PDS/EXTRAS/RDR/PSP/ORB_008900_008999/PSP_008930_1880/PSP_008930_1880_COLOR.abrowse.jpg">Click here </A>for a full resolution picture of this area.</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">HiRISE also has taken some great images of the polygon features found in the high northern latitudes, that form from the ground seasonally freezing and thawing</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">polygons and a few dunes</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/"><div align="center"><img src="http://content8.clipmarks.com/blog_cache/www.universetoday.com/img/3A5E3EB2-BBFE-4E04-B86B-2E7DC8956095" alt="Northern dunes and polygons. Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona " /></div></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/"><div align="center"><img src="http://content9.clipmarks.com/blog_cache/www.universetoday.com/img/82615D28-76AA-4293-872F-22720FABCA0C" alt="The Head of Athabasca Valles.  Credit:  Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona " /></div></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">This image is from an area</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">known as Elysium Planitia</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">just north of Mars’ equator</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">interesting geologic history</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/">catastrophic floods of water</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://www.universetoday.com/2008/08/01/latest-from-hirise-stairs-polygons-dunes-and-troughs/"><P>For more spectacular images, see the <A href="http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/index.php">HiRISE website</A>.</P></blockquote></div><div style="margin: 0px 6px 6px 4px;"><table style="font-size: 11px;border-spacing: 0px;padding: 0px;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tr><td style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">&nbsp;</td><td align="right" style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;width:107px" width="107"><a href="http://clipmarks.com/share/06BBAF26-9B13-4307-B704-846AE6C62D51/blog/" title="blog or email this clip"><img src="http://content6.clipmarks.com/images/c2b-foot.png" border="0" alt="blog it" width="107" height="17" style="border-width:0px;padding:0px;margin:0px;" /></a></td></tr></table></div></div>
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