MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-432, 25 July 2003

This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a field of small barchan sand dunes in the north polar region near 71.7°N, 51.3°W. Some of them are shaped like fortune cookies. The message these dunes provide: winds blow through this region from the lower right toward the upper left. The steep slip face slopes of these dunes, which point toward the upper left, indicate the wind direction. The scene is illuminated by sunlight from the upper right. The image is 3 km (1.9 mi) wide.