PIA04782: Valley Near Nilus Chaos
 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:  673 x 1009 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA04782.tif (669.6 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA04782.jpg (116.1 kB)

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Original Caption Released with Image:

MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-504, 5 October 2003

This August 2003 Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a valley near Nilus Chaos, around 25.2°N, 80.3°W. The scene has a uniform albedo, indicating that all of the landforms are probably mantled by fine, bright dust. Dark streaks on the valley walls indicate places where recent dust avalanches have occurred. The ripple-like dune features on the valley floor were formed by wind, but today they are inactive and covered with dust. A few craters, created by impacting debris, have formed on the dunes, again attesting to their inactivity in the modern martian environment. The image covers an area 3 km (1.9 mi) wide; it is illuminated by sunlight from the lower left.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2003-10-09