PIA04161: South Polar Layers
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows layered material exposed by erosion in the south polar region of Mars. At the time the image was acquired, the surface was covered with seasonal carbon dioxide frost.
 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 1524 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1188  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA04161.tif (1.025 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA04161.jpg (325.5 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:

19 August 2005
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows layered material exposed by erosion in the south polar region of Mars. At the time the image was acquired, the surface was covered with seasonal carbon dioxide frost. Dark spots and streaks indicate areas where the annual springtime defrosting process was underway.

Location near: 82.7°S, 112.1°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:
2005-08-19