PIA07898: Fretted Terrain Valley
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows the floor of a fretted terrain valley in the Coloe Fossae region of Mars. Valleys found at north middle latitudes often have odd linear features on them. This picture shows a close-up of one such closed valley.
 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 1454 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1081  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA07898.tif (1.217 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA07898.jpg (180.7 kB)  

Click on the image above to download a moderately sized image in JPEG format (possibly reduced in size from original)

Original Caption Released with Image:

4 May 2005
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows the floor of a fretted terrain valley in the Coloe Fossae region. Valleys found at north middle latitudes, such as this one, often have odd linear features on them. When seen at much lower resolution by the Viking Orbiters in the late 1970s, investigators assumed that the linear features indicated flow of ice or ice-rich debris, as might occur in a glacier or rock glacier. MOC images show little evidence to support the notion that these materials flow; indeed, similar ridges occur in closed valleys, from which nothing can flow. This picture shows a close-up of one such closed valley.

Location near: 35.3°N, 303.1°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: lower left
Season: Northern Summer

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2005-05-04