PIA10863: Polar Erg


Polar Erg

Caption:

Context image for PIA10863 Polar Erg
Context image for PIA10863
Polar Erg

A vast region of sand dunes is located on the margin of the north polar cap of Mars. This 'sea' of sand is call the polar erg.

Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude 80.5°N, Longitude 183.5°E. 20 meter/pixel resolution.

Note: this THEMIS visual image has not been radiometrically nor geometrically calibrated for this preliminary release. An empirical correction has been performed to remove instrumental effects. A linear shift has been applied in the cross-track and down-track direction to approximate spacecraft and planetary motion. Fully calibrated and geometrically projected images will be released through the Planetary Data System in accordance with Project policies at a later time.

Background Info:

Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Cataloging Keywords:

Name Value Additional Values
Target Mars
System
Target Type Planet
Mission 2001 Mars Odyssey
Instrument Host Mars Odyssey
Host Type Orbiter
Instrument Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS)
Detector
Extra Keywords Dune, Grayscale, Thermal
Acquisition Date
Release Date 2008-08-22
Date in Caption
Image Credit NASA/JPL/ASU
Source photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA10863
Identifier PIA10863