HiRISE | Sculpting Dunes in Ganges Chasma (ESP_026100

NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

Sculpting Dunes in Ganges Chasma
ESP_026100_1725 Science Theme: Aeolian Processes

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When dunes are located in a complex topographical area such a canyon, they become ideal candidates for detecting changes to their shapes and sizes over time.

The dunes here in Ganges Chasma--a canyon that’s on the eastern end of Valles Marineris--could be strongly influenced by winds, and it’s important not to underestimate the erosional power of wind. Because HiRISE has such good resolution, we can track these changes over time to tell us which way a dune is moving, how much, and in what direction. From these observations we can decipher present-day atmospheric processes.

Written by: HiRISE Science Team (narration: Tre Gibbs) (1 April 2012)

Acquisition date
20 February 2012

Local Mars time
15:12

Latitude (centered)
-7.510°

Longitude (East)
314.804°

Spacecraft altitude
267.3 km (166.1 miles)

Original image scale range
27.8 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~83 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
25 cm/pixel and North is up

Map projection
Equirectangular

Emission angle
15.7°

Phase angle
45.7°

Solar incidence angle
56°, with the Sun about 34° above the horizon

Solar longitude
72.9°, Northern Spring

For non-map projected images
North azimuth: 97°
Sub-solar azimuth: 42.4°

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   (716MB)

IRB color
map-projected   (461MB)

JP2 EXTRAS
Black and white
map-projected (361MB)
non-map           (356MB)

IRB color
map projected (144MB)
non-map           (332MB)

Merged IRB
map projected (181MB)

Merged RGB
map-projected (171MB)

RGB color
non map           (329MB)

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.