Nicolas Thomas wrote:Unusual Crater with Lava Flows Near Arsia Mons (ESP_017347_1585)
This image was targeted to look at lava flows in east Daedalia Planum. The flows here have different brightnesses (reflectivity) which may indicate different compositions.
The subimage shows another aspect of the image. A small 0.5 kilometer diameter crater shows a regular structure of aligned ridges in its interior. The origin of this structure is unclear but may be related to the breach in the crater rim to the left.
Eldar Noe wrote:A Small, Double-Ringed Crater (ESP_028162_2310)
This small, 230-meter crater formed by the impact of an asteroid onto a lobate flow deposit on Mars.
These deposits are surmised to have formed by the flow of glacial material on the surface of the planet. Ground-penetrating radar data from SHARAD, the radar sounder aboard MRO, show that a large abundance of ice is under the surface.
The impact penetrated through the material and into the substrate and formed this "double crater" as it excavated material from these two layers of different strengths.
This is a stereo pair with ESP_028083_2310.
Alfred McEwen wrote:Clay Color Inspiration (ESP_028367_2085)
This image covers a exposure of clay-rich bedrock on the "shore" of the Northern plains, north of Mawrth Vallis.
The relatively bright areas reveal a complex terrain with a range of textures and enhanced colors. We probably need to send a rover here to understand the complex history of these very ancient deposits.
Lazslo Kestay wrote:Cratered Cones in Grojtá Valles (ESP_028466_1955)
This scene shows a portion of Grojtá Valles, a system of channels carved into the equatorial lava plains of Mars.
The floor here includes numerous streamlined landforms. The nature of the flow though the valleys (volcanic or fluvial) is debated, but at this locality the flow unit hosts a series of small cratered cones. These cones are interpreted to be the product of explosive lava-water interactions, indicating that the region is covered by lava.
Moreover, the delicate nature of the cratered cones argues against the passage of subsequent floods across this surface because the small landforms would have been eroded.
This is a stereo pair with ESP_027978_1955.
Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona
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