Boulders in Gully Alcoves

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Caption:

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Gullies are often found on steep slopes. In the winter, this area is covered with a layer of carbon dioxide ice (dry ice). In the spring, when the ice warms up and transitions to gas, it dislodges material on the slope, forming a gully.

In general, this process works best on fine material, leaving behind large boulders. These boulders can be seen collected in the gully alcoves . Occasionally, boulders slide or roll downhill, like those sprinkled downslope in this image.

This set of gullies is found at -71 degrees latitude in the Southern hemisphere.

Background Info:

The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates HiRISE, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

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