PIA03098: Defrosting Terrain
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows Mars' south polar scene, covered by bright, seasonal, carbon dioxide frost. The dark patches are areas where the frost has begun to sublime away.
 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 2432 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1276  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA03098.tif (1.636 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA03098.jpg (292.1 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:

9 November 2005
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a south polar scene, covered by bright, seasonal, carbon dioxide frost. The dark patches are areas where the frost has begun to sublime away.

Location near: 80.0°S, 334.0°W
Image width: width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: upper left
Season: Southern Spring

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2005-11-09