PIA06815: Polar Dunes, Spotted
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows sand dunes in the martian north polar region in mid-spring, July 2004. In summer, the dunes will be dark. As they defrost, dark spots form on their surfaces.
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) 
 Spacecraft:  Mars Global Surveyor Orbiter
 Instrument:  Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) 
 Product Size:  512 x 768 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-827  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA06815.tif (393.8 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA06815.jpg (96.41 kB)  

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Original Caption Released with Image:

23 August 2004
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows sand dunes in the martian north polar region in mid-spring, July 2004. In summer, the dunes will be dark. As they defrost, dark spots form on their surfaces. This image is located near 82.8°N, 219.6°W. The image covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) across and sunlight illuminates the scene from the lower left.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2004-08-23