HiPOD: Friday, 20 October 2023
Spring on Southern Sand Dunes

Spring on Southern Sand Dunes
When we took this image, spring was slowly returning to the Southern Hemisphere. These sand dunes, within Kaiser Crater, are partially covered with carbon dioxide ice. Numerous channels going down the face of the dune are caused by blocks of ice sliding down the slope.

The alcoves of the channels on the right have blocks of ice waiting to be released by the warming sun. In the channels bright spots mark what we think are blocks already sliding down.

ID: ESP_079809_1325
date: 6 August 2023
altitude: 252 km

https://uahirise.org/hipod/ESP_079809_1325
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
#Mars #science #NASA

Black & white is less than 5 km across; enhanced color is less than 1 km. For full observation details, visit the ID link.