PIA08494: Pitted Plain
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows a chain of collapse pits on a dust-mantled, lava-covered plain northeast of Ascraeus Mons -- one of the giant volcanoes located in the Tharsis 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:  2048 x 2464 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1476  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA08494.tif (5.051 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA08494.jpg (516.4 kB)  

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Original Caption Released with Image:

28 May 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows a chain of collapse pits on a dust-mantled, lava-covered plain northeast of Ascraeus Mons -- one of the giant volcanoes located in the Tharsis region of Mars. Pit chains are associated with collapse which may be driven by several processes including, but not limited to, crustal extension owing to tectonic processes and the collapse of the roof of a lava tube.

Location near: 14.8°N, 99.1°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:
2006-05-28