PIA08020: Terra Sirenum Gullies
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a portion of the northern wall complex of a crater in northwest Terra Sirenum on Mars. Several spectacular gully networks extend from a variety of elevations on the wall and run downslope toward the crater.
 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:  2048 x 3352 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1416  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA08020.tif (6.872 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA08020.jpg (747.1 kB)  

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Original Caption Released with Image:

29 March 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a portion of the northern wall complex of a crater in northwest Terra Sirenum. Several spectacular gully networks extend from a variety of elevations on the wall and run downslope toward the crater floor (bottom of image). The genesis of these features is still hotly debated in the Mars science community. Among the possibilities is that of a combination of mass movement and groundwater seepage and runoff.

Location near: 39.2°S, 164.2°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:
2006-03-29