PIA06699: Light and Dark Slope Streaks
 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:  512 x 768 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems
 Producer ID:  MOC2-794
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA06699.tif (374.6 kB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA06699.jpg (27.72 kB)

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Original Caption Released with Image:

21 July 2004
Dark slope streaks are a common feature on slopes thickly-mantled by dust, especially in the Tharsis, Arabia, and western Amazonis regions of Mars. Less common are light-toned slope streaks, which often occur in the same area as dark streaks. They are most common in Arabia Terra, and some are shown in this Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image. Slope streaks are probably the result of sudden avalanches of extremely dry dust. The behavior of the avalanching dust is somewhat fluid-like, and new streaks have been observed to form over intervals of a few months to a Mars year. This image is located near 13.4°N, 340.3°W, and covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the lower left.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2004-07-21