Aeolian Mars
Explanation:
Mars' atmosphere
is relatively thin, still when
martian winds
blow they
weather and
shape its surface.
Like
familiar aeolian
features on Earth, this field of dunes
within Mars' Rabe crater exhibits graceful
undulating ridges which can shift as windblown material is
deposited on the dunes' windward face and falls away down
the steeper leeward slopes.
Indicated by the arrow, the dark trails are signs that the
martian sand has avalanched down the steep slopes
in the recent past.
Rippling patterns of smaller dunes are also visible in
this sharp high-resolution view
along with criss-crossing dark
trails which may be evidence of local
dust-devil windstorms.
The image is about 3 kilometers across and
was recorded in March of 1999 by the
orbiting Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
