Ice Rich Clouds - False Color

Scaled Image

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/ASU

About this image

The THEMIS VIS camera contains 5 filters. The data from different filters can be combined in multiple ways to create a false color image. These false color images may reveal subtle variations of the surface not easily identified in a single band image.

The 5 filters are collected with a short delay between them. In creating false color images of the surface, the surface is stable and each filter image is overlaid and "connected" based of the location of identical surface features. However, when there is movement occurring during the delay, the filters don't overlay well.

In this case the movement is seen as bands of blue and yellow. These are ice rich clouds over the summit of Arsia Mons. The altitude of the clouds and speed they are blown by the wind is enough that there is significant difference in cloud locations between the short delay separating the filters. Imaging transient clouds allows for study of the atmosphere of Mars.

Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images. 

Context

Image ID: 
V60706001 (View data in Mars Image Explorer)
-9.2731
239.942
60706
2015-08-21 06:46
Wed, 2018-09-19
VIS
256 pixels (17 km)
3792 pixels (254 km)
0.067089 km/pixel
0.0678299 km/pixel

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