HiRISE | Polygonal Fracturing of South Polar Layered Deposits (PSP_004959

NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

Polygonal Fracturing of South Polar Layered Deposits
PSP_004959_0865 Science Theme: Polar Geology

WALLPAPER

800 1024
1152

This image shows the south polar layered deposits, with curving layer outcrops caused by erosion of valleys into the deposits.

On closer inspection, polygonal (mostly rectangular) fractures are visible, mostly near the center of the image. Polygonal fractures are also observed in the north polar layered deposits, but typically on a much smaller scale.

Here in the south, the fractures cross layer boundaries, while in the north the fractures are usually confined to a single layer. Therefore, the fractures in the south polar layered deposits formed after the surface was eroded to the configuration seen here, probably due to expansion and contraction of water ice below the surface.Written by: Ken Herkenhoff (30 September 2007)

Image Products: All image links are drag & drop for HiView, or click to download

JPEG
Grayscale: map projected non-map
IRB color: map projected non-map
RGB color: non-map projected

JP2 DOWNLOAD
Grayscale: map-projected (556.0 MB)
IRB color: map-projected (257.9 MB)

JP2 EXTRAS
Grayscale: map-projected (379.6 MB),
non-map (392.0 MB)

IRB color: map projected (179.0 MB)
non-map (333.1 MB)

RGB color: non map-projected (313.4 MB)

ADDITIONAL IMAGE INFORMATION
Grayscale label Color label
Merged IRB label Merged RGB label
EDR products

About color products (PDF)
HiView main page
HiRISE Online Image Viewer

Observation Toolbox

Acquisition date:	17 August 2007	Local Mars time:	9:49 PM
Latitude (centered):	-86.396 degrees	Longitude (East):	179.858 degrees
Range to target site:	248.6 km (155.4 miles)	Original image scale range:	49.7 cm/pixel (with 2 x 2 binning) so objects ~149 cm across are resolved
Map projected scale:	50 cm/pixel	Map projection:	POLAR STEREOGRAPHIC
Emission angle:	9.5 degrees	Phase angle:	65.3 degrees
Solar incidence angle:	71 degrees, with the Sun about 19 degrees above the horizon	Solar longitude:	297.4 degrees, Northern Winter
For non-map projected products:
North azimuth:	201 degrees	Sub-solar azimuth:	53.0 degrees
For map-projected products
North azimuth:	89.76 degrees	Sub solar azimuth:	301.7 degrees

NEARBY OBSERVATIONS

Exposure of South Polar Layered Deposits
Sublimation Features
Investigate Sublimation Process
South Polar Layers Classic Exposure
South Polar Layers Exposure
Seasonal Monitoring

Usage Policy
All of the images produced by HiRISE and accessible on this site are within the public domain: there are no restrictions on their usage by anyone in the public, including news or science organizations. We do ask for a credit line where possible: Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

Postscript
For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The HiRISE camera was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corporation and is operated by the University of Arizona. The image data were processed using the U.S. Geological Survey’s ISIS3 software.