A Dark Dune Field in Proctor Crater on Mars
Explanation:
Was this image taken with a telescope or a microscope?
Perhaps this clue will help: if the dark forms were
bacteria,
they would each span over football field across.
What is actually being seen are large sand dunes on the floor of
Proctor Crater
on Mars.
The
above picture was taken by
HiRISE camera
on board the
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO),
a robot spacecraft currently in orbit around Mars.
The dark rippled
dunes likely formed more
recently than the
lighter rock
forms they appear to cover, and are thought to
slowly shift in response to pervasive
winds.
The
dunes
arise
from a complex relationship between the sandy surface and
high winds on Mars.
Similar dunes
were first seen in Proctor Crater by
Mariner 9 more than 35 years ago.
Challenge:
Can you find a microscopic picture that resembles this astronomical one?
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.
