PIA08436: Under Attack
This NASA Mars Global Surveyor image shows wind-eroded outcrops overlying lava flow surfaces located west of Olympus Mons. Outcrops with this appearance are called yardangs.
 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:  672 x 2195 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1455  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA08436.tif (1.477 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA08436.jpg (320.9 kB)  

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

7 May 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows wind-eroded outcrops overlying lava flow surfaces located west of Olympus Mons. Outcrops with this appearance are called yardangs. Yardangs typically form in sedimentary rock or volcanic ash that contains some amount of sand. The weathering of the rock and release of sand-sized particles from the outcrops, in the face of wind erosion, slowly shape the rock into the classic, inverted boat hull-like shapes of yardangs.

Location near: 13.2°N, 160.1°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: lower left
Season: Northern Spring

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2006-05-07