Mysterious Color-Changing Dust Devil Track
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona
Mysterious Color-Changing Dust Devil Track
ESP_023327_2065  Science Theme: Aeolian Processes
Dust devils leave tracks behind them that create the beautiful swirling patterns visible here (approximately 0.5 kilometers) and in many other images of dust-covered terrain. Suction created by the air rotating in a whirlwind removes a thin layer of light-colored dust from the Martian surface, leaving behind dark lines in the dust devil’s path.

That's what usually happens. In this case, however, there is an unusual streak that appears brighter at one end (approximately 0.6 kilometers or 0.4 miles across, and north is roughly upwards).

The bright streak could be a deposit of light-colored material that the dust devil dropped for some reason: maybe the dust devil died out right at this spot. Or it could be that at this particular location, the underlying dune is brighter than the dust on top of it, so when the dust devil removed the surface layer, a brighter layer below was revealed. Or there could be some other explanation we haven't even thought of yet!

Numerous small slope streaks are also visible in this image; for example, on the left side of the subimage, white arrow. These are thought to occur when a thin layer of dust avalanches downhill, revealing darker material beneath. Over time, these streaks, like dust devil tracks, slowly brighten to match their surroundings, as dust is deposited from the atmosphere to cover them.

Written by: Ingrid Daubar  (18 October 2011)

This is a stereo pair with ESP_023261_2065.
 
Acquisition date
19 July 2011

Local Mars time
14:09

Latitude (centered)
26.115°

Longitude (East)
57.041°

Spacecraft altitude
284.2 km (176.6 miles)

Original image scale range
30.5 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~91 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
25 cm/pixel and North is up

Map projection
Equirectangular

Emission angle
20.6°

Phase angle
36.0°

Solar incidence angle
49°, with the Sun about 41° above the horizon

Solar longitude
330.5°, Northern Winter

For non-map projected images
North azimuth:  96°
Sub-solar azimuth:  316.5°
JPEG
Black and white
map projected  non-map

IRB color
map projected  non-map

Merged IRB
map projected

Merged RGB
map projected

RGB color
non-map projected

JP2
Black and white
map-projected   (886MB)

IRB color
map-projected   (393MB)

JP2 EXTRAS
Black and white
map-projected  (404MB)
non-map           (388MB)

IRB color
map projected  (131MB)
non-map           (307MB)

Merged IRB
map projected  (209MB)

Merged RGB
map-projected  (204MB)

RGB color
non map           (314MB)
ANAGLYPHS
Map-projected, reduced-resolution
Full resolution JP2 download
Anaglyph details page

DIGITAL TERRAIN MODEL (DTM)
DTM details page

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
B&W label
Color label
Merged IRB label
Merged RGB label
EDR products
HiView

NB
IRB: infrared-red-blue
RGB: red-green-blue
About color products (PDF)

Black & white is 5 km across; enhanced color about 1 km
For scale, use JPEG/JP2 black & white map-projected images

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:
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

POSTSCRIPT
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. The HiRISE camera was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corporation and is operated by the University of Arizona.