UAHiRISE (NASA MRO)

There are wonderful landforms here in Nili Fossae, which was once a candidate landing site for the Mars Science Laboratory. A detailed look here can help to determine any interaction with sulfates that have been detected here with surrounding terrain. This is a non-narrated clip. Less than 5 km across. Music: “A Face in a Cloud” by Nathan Moore (used by permission). NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_047194_1965

These layered geological units are in northwest Hellas Planitia (Mars), part of an embaying pitted deposit present in the region. Layers here can be traced around escarpments and may allow us to perform dip measurements with digital terrain models. (This is a non-narrated clip, less than 5 km across.) Music: “The Blue Pearl” by Jesse Gallagher (used by permission). NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_042487_1530 #Mars #science

These layered units are part of embayed pitted deposits in this area. Examining the textures and bedding is also part of the rationale for this observation. (Less than 5 km top to bottom and north is to the right. This is a non-narrated clip.) Music: “Asterism” by Underbelly. (Used by permission.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_039863_1510

Hydrothermal processes might have been present here at one point in the ancient past, so might there be traces of water? This image (in Libya Montes) is located on the southern rim of the impact crater, which also has a large central peak. We can see a variety of formations (dunes, outcrops) in this image. The terrain in Libya Montes was likely uplifted by the impact that created the Isidis basin to the north. (Less than 5 km across. For images with scalebars, see the link below.) Music: “Growing Space” by Astron. NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_028930_1785

Every Martian spring, fans of dust are blown out from under the seasonal layer of carbon dioxide ice that forms a polar cap over the winter. (Narration: www.tregibbs.com. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_064469_0945

Most craters are round, because a high-velocity impact acts like a powerful explosion that expands in all directions. This crater is an exception because the northern rim is almost perfectly straight. (Narration: www.tregibbs.com. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_064445_1475

Are these ridges in Terra Meridiani the results of some kind of fractures? How did they form? Terra Meridiani is one of the more complex regions on Mars, with a rich array of sedimentary, volcanic, and impact surfaces that span a wide range of Martian history. (This is a unnarrated clip.) Music: “Autostrade” by roljui NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_026639_1815

Much of Mars is covered by sand and dust but in some places stacks of sedimentary layers are visible. (Narration: www.tregibbs.com. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_064288_1525

This image shows some faint traces of dark flows along the headwall of an impact crater. These are relics of seasonal recurring slope lineae (RSL) that formed on an equator-facing slope. (Narration: www.tregibbs.com. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_064180_1320

Toro Crater’s floor has altered minerals and possible hydrothermal features. It’s wonderfully complicated and diverse. Toro is located west of the Isidis Basin in the Northern Hemisphere of Mars. (This is a non-narrated clip, less than 5 km across.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_025344_1970

There is some potentially interesting mineralogy in this sample of the terrain in north-central Melas Chasma on Mars. Melas is the widest segment of the giant Valles Marineris canyon system that cuts through layered deposits that might have been sediments from an old lake. (This is a non-narrated clip using the enhanced color center swath of our observation, less than 1 km across. For full image info, see the below link.) Music: “Portal Trip,” by Asher Fulero. NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_013574_1695

Sand dunes are endlessly fascinating to look at on Mars, and this group is no exception. The dunes are inexorably moving across the landscape here, obscuring the rocky landscape. The dune ripples, almost shimmering, give the appearance of being waves. (This is a non-narrated clip using the center enhanced color swath, about 1 km across.) Music: “Take It Easy” by Bad Snacks. NASA/JPL/Arizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_014348_1345

When you’ve got three large volcanoes in this area (together known as the Tharsis Montes) you’re certainly bound to have lots of remnants of lava flow. These flow boundaries were also distinct in THEMIS images. This observation is directly south of Arsia Mons. (This is a non-narrated clip.) Music: “Archetype” by Anno Domini Beats. NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_055680_1595 (Less than 5 km, or 3 miles, across.)

This color HiRISE view shows a pitted, blocky surface, but also more unusually, it has contorted, irregular features. Although there are impact craters in this area, some of the features are too irregular to be relic impact craters or river channels. One possibility is that sedimentary layers have been warped from below to create these patterns. The freezing and thawing of subsurface ice is a mechanism that could have caused this. Acidalia Planitia is part of the northern plains of Mars, at a latitude of 44 degrees north. (Narration: Tre Gibbs. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_064090_2250

Existing images of this impact crater show a couple of dark lineations on the equator-facing wall that resemble small recurring slope lineae (RSL). However, unlike typical RSL, these lines persist for several Mars years with only minor changes. We are continuing to monitor this site to understand how they differ from “standard” recurring slope lineae. (Narration: Tre Gibbs. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_054687_2055

Gullies in the sand dunes of Matara Crater (on Mars) are very active. One large gully in particular has had major changes in every Martian winter since HiRISE began monitoring, triggered by the seasonal dry ice frost that accumulates each year. This time there was an especially large change, depositing a huge mass of sand. The sand divided into many small toes near its end, or perhaps many individual flows descended near the same spot. Additionally, a long sinuous ridge of sand was deposited. This could be a levee that formed along one side of a flow, but there is not much sand past the end of the ridge, so it might also be the main body of a flow. (Narration: Tre Gibbs. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_063969_1300

This formation might be what is called a “cold glacier,” meaning that its base is entirely below the pressure melting point. They are also called “dry-based glaciers.” Cold based glaciation that could provide insights into the evolution of the nearby alluvial fans. This landform is located in Majuro Crater, which is 45 kilometers in diameter and is located on the northeastern Hellas Basin rim. Music: “At the Foot of the Sphinx” by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) Artist: http://www.twinmusicom.org/ NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_055646_1465

This image caught two different targets at once! In the top (northern) part there is a geologically-young crater about 300 meters in diameter, with rocky ejecta. The crater looks very fresh and steep and is not buried or filled in with the smooth deposits that cover the region. Craters like this tell us what is in the shallow subsurface and are very valuable for understanding the geology. In the bottom (southern) part is a smaller crater, only about 15 meters across. This one is even younger, having formed between 2008 and 2010, when it was detected by MRO’s Context Camera. The smaller crater exposed subsurface ice, and HiRISE has been re-imaging it to see how it changes as the ice slowly sublimates away. (Narration: Tre Gibbs. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://www.uahirise.org/ESP_063947_2310

This is a non-narrated clip featuring dunes within Pettit Crater, which is 92 kilometers in diameter and was named after Edison Pettit, an American astronomer (1890–1962). North is to the left; less than 5 km top to bottom. Music: “Because For Everything There is Someone” by pATCHES. NASA/JPL/UArizona

Gullies are common on steep slopes of many impact craters on Mars. When gullies were first observed, there was a lot of excitement surrounding them because similar features form on Earth through the action of liquid water. (Narration: Tre Gibbs. Black and white images are 5 km across; enhanced color images are 1 km.) NASA/JPL/UArizona https://uahirise.org/ESP_063775_1295