PIA08016: South Polarscape
This image from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a spectacular summertime view of a portion of the south polar residual cap.
 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:  1024 x 1980 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1412  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA08016.tif (2.03 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA08016.jpg (502.9 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:

25 March 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a spectacular summertime view of a portion of the south polar residual cap. Large, semi-continuous mesas are separated by circular and other oddly-shaped depressions. These features are all formed in frozen carbon dioxide; the scarps which bound the mesas and pit walls retreat at a rate of about 3 meters (a little more than 3 yards) each martian southern summer.

Location near: 87.7°S, 357.3°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: upper left
Season: Southern Summer

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2006-03-25