A Look at a Steep North Polar Scarp
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona
A Look at a Steep North Polar Scarp
ESP_076516_2640  Science Theme: Polar Geology
This very steep ( more than 60 degrees) scarp shows mass wasting activity every year in the early northern spring, when it is first illuminated after the period of winter darkness. This observation was an attempt to image in late northern winter, in spite of poor illumination.

The solar incidence angle is 91.3 degrees, meaning that the Sun is just below the horizon and there was no direct lighting when this image was acquired. However, the atmosphere scatters light to create some diffuse lighting, and the surface is very bright from winter frost deposition, so a useful image of the surface was obtained.

The image reveals relatively dark streaks down the steep slope, so mass wasting activity has already started. There is some direct illumination here close to noontime at this time of year, which may be sufficient to initiate some activity.

Written by: Alfred McEwen (narration: Tre Gibbs)  (27 February 2023)
 
Acquisition date
22 November 2022

Local Mars time
12:36

Latitude (centered)
83.882°

Longitude (East)
235.184°

Spacecraft altitude
316.7 km (196.8 miles)

Original image scale range
63.3 cm/pixel (with 2 x 2 binning) so objects ~190 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
50 cm/pixel

Map projection
Polarstereographic

Emission angle
0.1°

Phase angle
91.3°

Solar incidence angle
91°, with the Sun about -1° above the horizon

Solar longitude
342.6°, Northern Winter

For non-map projected images
North azimuth:  117°
Sub-solar azimuth:  305.6°
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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.