Wrinkle Ridge in Solis Planum
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona
Wrinkle Ridge in Solis Planum
PSP_006573_1560  Science Theme: Tectonic Processes
This observation shows a wrinkle ridge in Solis Planum, located in the Thaumasia region of Mars, a high-elevation volcanic plain located south of the Valles Marineris canyon system and east of the Tharsis volcanic complex. Solis Planum contains some of the most distinct and well studied arrays of wrinkle ridges on Mars.

Wrinkle ridges are long, winding topographic highs and are often characterized by a broad arch topped with a crenulated ridge. These features have been identified on many other planetary bodies such as the Moon, Mercury, and Venus. On Mars, they are many tens to hundreds of kilometers long, tens of kilometers wide, and have a relief of a few hundred meters. Wrinkle ridges are most commonly believed to form from horizontal compression or shortening of the crust due to faulting and are often located in volcanic plains. They commonly have asymmetrical cross sectional profiles and an offset in elevation on either side of the ridge. Large dunes are also visible bordering the wrinkle ridge.

The reddish colors seen in this image most likely indicate the presence of dust (or indurated dust) and the darker, bluish colors most likely indicate the presence of larger rocks and boulders on the wrinkle ridge.


Written by: Maria Banks  (6 February 2008)
 
Acquisition date
21 December 2007

Local Mars time
14:31

Latitude (centered)
-23.519°

Longitude (East)
278.739°

Spacecraft altitude
251.1 km (156.1 miles)

Original image scale range
25.1 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~75 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
25 cm/pixel and North is up

Map projection
Equirectangular

Emission angle
0.2°

Phase angle
45.2°

Solar incidence angle
45°, with the Sun about 45° above the horizon

Solar longitude
5.9°, Northern Spring

For non-map projected images
North azimuth:  97°
Sub-solar azimuth:  35.5°
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Merged IRB
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Merged RGB
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JP2 EXTRAS
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non-map           (791MB)

IRB color
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non-map           (587MB)

Merged IRB
map projected  (296MB)

Merged RGB
map-projected  (301MB)

RGB color
non map           (566MB)
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

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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.