Dalmatian Terrain

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Caption:

Released 10 June 2003

The polar regions of Mars have surfaces than can show dark spots on a brighter background. These surfaces are informally called "dalmatian terrain" because of their appearance. This image shows this type of terrain in a valley within the southern polar layered deposits, not too far from the south polar cap. Elsewhere, defrosting dunes have shown a similar spotted pattern. Perhaps this "dalmatian terrain" is a distinctive pattern that forms over all defrosting patches of sand.

Image information: VIS instrument. Latitude -70.7°, Longitude 354.2° East (5.8%deg; West). 19 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:

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.

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