PIA08477: Polar Shells
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows sand dunes overlain by a layer of seasonal carbon dioxide frost in the north polar region of Mars.
 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 2462 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1469  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA08477.tif (2.061 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA08477.jpg (458.7 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:

21 May 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows sand dunes overlain by a layer of seasonal carbon dioxide frost in the north polar region of Mars. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the lower left, but slopes facing toward the upper right seem illuminated because of the thicker accumulation of frost on the slopes facing away from the sunlight.

Location near: 76.3°N, 264.3°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: lower left
Season: Northern Winter

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2006-05-21