HiRISE | A Recent Impact in Elysium Planitia (ESP_039148

NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

A Recent Impact in Elysium Planitia
ESP_039148_1980 Science Theme: Impact Processes

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This image shows a new impact crater in Elysium Planitia that was first discovered by the Mars Context Camera (CTX, also onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) which formed between February 2012 and June 2014. It appeared as a dark streak with multiple secondary craters, which was not seen in the previous CTX image.

The HiRISE camera commonly monitors new impacts such as these; however this is the first image of this particular impact by HiRISE.

The image shows a very distinct crater rim and ejecta that is much darker than the surrounding dust-covered terrain. The distribution of the rayed ejecta suggests that the impactor struck from the west.

Written by: Eric Pilles, Livio Tornabene, Ryan Hopkins, Kayle Hansen (audio: Tre Gibbs) (7 January 2015)

Acquisition date
02 December 2014

Local Mars time
15:17

Latitude (centered)
18.012°

Longitude (East)
138.662°

Spacecraft altitude
281.0 km (174.6 miles)

Original image scale range
28.3 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~85 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
25 cm/pixel and North is up

Map projection
Equirectangular

Emission angle
5.2°

Phase angle
67.7°

Solar incidence angle
63°, with the Sun about 27° above the horizon

Solar longitude
245.1°, Northern Autumn

For non-map projected images
North azimuth: 97°
Sub-solar azimuth: 327.6°

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   (487MB)

IRB color
map-projected   (234MB)

JP2 EXTRAS
Black and white
map-projected (184MB)
non-map           (274MB)

IRB color
map projected (58MB)
non-map           (219MB)

Merged IRB
map projected (127MB)

Merged RGB
map-projected (131MB)

RGB color
non map           (204MB)

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.