PIA08710: Polar Band
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows layers exposed in a trough in the martian north polar region. At the time the picture was acquired, the entire scene was covered by seasonal carbon dioxide frost.
 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 1974 pixels (w x h) 
 Produced By:  Malin Space Science Systems 
 Producer ID:  MOC2-1568  
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA08710.tif (2.024 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA08710.jpg (302.1 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:

28 August 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows layers exposed in a trough in the martian north polar region. At the time the picture was acquired, the entire scene was covered by seasonal carbon dioxide frost. By late spring and into summer, these layers would appear darker, once the carbon dioxide frost sublimes away.

Location near: 84.9°N, 263.3°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: lower left
Season: Northern Spring

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Image Addition Date:
2006-08-28