7 October 2004
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows light-toned, layered rock outcrops in a pitted and eroded region just northeast of Hellas Planitia. The light-toned materials are most likely sedimentary rocks deposited early in martian history (but long after the Hellas Basin formed by a giant asteroid or comet impact). The scene also includes a plethora of large dark-toned, windblown ripples. The image is located near 27.2°S, 280.7°W, and covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the upper left.