A Dark Sand Dune on Mars
Explanation:
What is that dark sand dune doing on Mars?
NASA's robotic
rover Curiosity
has been studying it to find out, making this the
first-ever up-close
investigation
of an active sane dune on another world.
Named
Namib Dune,
the dark sand mound stands about 4 meters tall and,
along with the other
Bagnold
Dunes, is located on the northwestern flank of
Mount Sharp.
The
featured image
was taken last month and
horizontally compressed here for comprehensibility.
Wind is causing the
dune to advance
about one meter a year across the light bedrock underneath, and
wind-blown sand is visible on the left.
Part of the Curiosity rover itself is visible on the lower right.
Just in the past few days,
Curiosity scooped up some of the
dark sand for a detailed analysis.
After further exploration of the
Bagnold Dunes,
Curiosity is scheduled to continue its trek up the 5-kilometer tall
Mount Sharp, the central
peak in the
large crater where the car-sized rover landed.
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.
