PIA18242: Sunken and Pitted Ejecta
 Target Name:  Mars
 Is a satellite of:  Sol (our sun)
 Mission:  Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO)
 Spacecraft:  Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO)
 Instrument:  HiRISE
 Product Size:  2880 x 1800 pixels (w x h)
 Produced By:  University of Arizona/HiRISE-LPL
 Other  
Information: 
Other products from image ESP_036182_2230
 Full-Res TIFF:  PIA18242.tif (15.56 MB)
 Full-Res JPEG:  PIA18242.jpg (1.028 MB)

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The objective of this observation was to examine the edge of impact ejecta from a crater to the north-west of this area (north is up, west is to the left). The ejecta visible in the top left of this image seems to be lower than the surrounding surface.

This is unusual because impact ejecta is laid down on top of existing ground. The ejecta also seems to have pits. Perhaps the hot ejecta fell on frozen ground and melted the underlying ice?

HiRISE is one of six instruments on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. The University of Arizona, Tucson, operates the orbiter's HiRISE camera, which was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

Image Credit:
NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona

Image Addition Date:
2014-04-30