Dark Slope Streaks Split on Mars

Astronomy Picture of the Day · 2018-07-18 · NASA (public domain)

Advertisement
Dark Slope Streaks Split on Mars — APOD for 2018-07-18

What is creating these dark streaks on Mars? No one is sure. Candidates include dust avalanches, evaporating dry ice sleds , and liquid water flows. What is clear is that the streaks occur through light surface dust and expose a deeper dark layer. Similar streaks have been photographed on Mars for years and are one of the few surface features that change their appearance seasonally . Particularly interesting here is that larger streaks split into smaller streaks further down the slope. The featured image was taken by the HiRISE camera on board the Mars-orbiting Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) several months ago. Currently, a global dust storm is encompassing much of Mars.

Astronomy Picture of the Day for 2018-07-18 — image & explanation courtesy of NASA (public domain), mirrored at Tukuk-OS for reading and search convenience.

Advertisement
Advertisement