wind streak
July 29, 2013
A piece of Mars: This image is way up high on the Tharsis Montes on Mars, at an elevation of 5900 m (19,350 ft). At night the wind comes screaming down from some of the tallest mountains in the Solar […]
November 25, 2012
A piece of Mars: Small dunes (or possibly ripples) are likely no longer moving in today’s winds. Or are they? Dark splotches on their upper (northern) sides suggest some kind of wind scour has recently occurred. Winds blow, create dunes, […]
November 20, 2012
A piece of Mars: Some places on Mars highlight just how effective the wind is at sculpting the surface. This is a good example. Dark and light stripes on the right show not one but two successive influxes of sand: […]
November 1, 2012
A piece of Mars: When the wind blows sand up against obstacles like this bright little hill, the sand is swept around to the sides. This leaves a wind shadow in the wake of the hill. It’s one of the […]
August 28, 2012
A piece of Gale crater, Mars: Here is a tiny piece of feathery terrain way up high on Mt. Sharp, the mountain that Curiosity will one day climb. This is a special unit of fine-grained material that has weathered into […]
July 26, 2012
A piece of Mars: Wind streaks are a common sight on Mars. They are formed either by the wind blowing stuff away or blowing stuff in, and it can be quite difficult to tell which is which. In this case, […]
June 3, 2012
A piece of Mars: Bright rocks are being scoured and shaped by dark (bluish) sand. On Mars, active geologic activity is easy to identify: when there aren’t many craters visible, you’re probably looking at a surface that is undergoing change. […]
May 29, 2012
A piece of Mars: Back in 2007, the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity spent a great deal of time investigating the rim of Victoria crater. Here is the northern rim of the crater, showing three dark (bluish) sandy streaks formed by […]
April 27, 2012
Well now, here is my very first post of my very first blog. Ever. Although really it’s not my first time writing what I think, so maybe it’s not a big deal after all. I am a research scientist here […]