Painting with Frost
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona
Painting with Frost
ESP_047074_1030  Science Theme: Seasonal Processes
Subtle variations in color look like brush strokes as the lightly frosted terrain reflects light. These variations provide a backdrop to some exotic features referred to colloquially as “spiders.”

The radial channels branching out from a central depression are formed when the seasonal layer of dry ice turns to gas in the spring and erodes the surface, which is a uniquely Martian landform.

This target was identified by the citizen scientists at Planetfour: Terrains.

Written by: Candy Hansen (narration: Tre Gibbs)   (7 December 2016)
 
Acquisition date
11 August 2016

Local Mars time
16:11

Latitude (centered)
-76.869°

Longitude (East)
131.630°

Spacecraft altitude
247.7 km (154.0 miles)

Original image scale range
24.8 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~74 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
25 cm/pixel

Map projection
Polarstereographic

Emission angle
0.1°

Phase angle
75.2°

Solar incidence angle
75°, with the Sun about 15° above the horizon

Solar longitude
202.0°, Northern Autumn

For non-map projected images
North azimuth:  103°
Sub-solar azimuth:  36.3°
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   (552MB)

IRB color
map-projected   (336MB)

JP2 EXTRAS
Black and white
map-projected  (265MB)
non-map           (290MB)

IRB color
map projected  (79MB)
non-map           (292MB)

Merged IRB
map projected  (137MB)

Merged RGB
map-projected  (127MB)

RGB color
non map           (259MB)
BONUS
4K (TIFF)
8K (TIFF)

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.