PIA07128: Noachis Pit Crater Gullies


Noachis Pit Crater Gullies

Caption:

13 December 2004
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows fine details among mid-latitude gullies formed on the walls of a large pit within a filled meteor impact crater in the Noachis Terra region of Mars. Like the gullies originally described in June 2000 , these may have formed by the seepage of groundwater. Other scientists have speculated that, elsewhere on Mars, similar gullies might form by melting of ice or snow, by liquid or gaseous carbon dioxide, or dry mass movement (landsliding) processes. The many fine tributaries in the Noachis pit crater area shown here lend support to the hypothesis that a liquid with the physical properties of water was involved. This image is located near 47.8°S, 354.9°W, and covers an area approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) wide. The scene is illuminated by sunlight from the upper left.

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target Mars
System
Target Type Planet
Mission Mars Global Surveyor (MGS)
Instrument Host Mars Global Surveyor
Host Type Orbiter
Instrument Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC)
Detector
Extra Keywords Crater, Grayscale, Impact, Water
Acquisition Date
Release Date 2004-12-13
Date in Caption 2004-12-13
Image Credit NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA07128
Identifier PIA07128