PIA04199: Defrosting Sand
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a patch of frost-covered, dark sand that, at the time the picture was acquired in June 2005, had begun to defrost. The frost is carbon dioxide.
 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:  836 x 3188 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1202  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA04199.tif (2.668 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA04199.jpg (473.1 kB)  

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Original Caption Released with Image:

2 September 2005
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a patch of frost-covered, dark sand that, at the time the picture was acquired in June 2005, had begun to defrost. The frost is carbon dioxide. Dunes and other patches of sand are usually the first polar features to develop dark spots as the frost begins to sublime away.

Location near: 78.9°S, 80.2°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:
2005-09-02