Dunes and Dust Devils

Scaled Image

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/ASU

About this image

This unnamed crater in Terra Cimmeria has both a sand sheet with dune forms and a multitude of dust devil tracks. The linear and scalloped dark marks are created by dust devils removing surface dust and revealing the darker surface beneath the dust. It is common for sand to accumulate in the floor of crater. Changes in the wind occur due to the crater shape and possible internal peak or pit features. As the winds are deflected by this type of feature the sand and dust carried by the wind will settle out. The extensive number of dust devil tracks indicate that surface winds are pervasive in this region.

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

Context

Image ID: 
V75246007 (View data in Mars Image Explorer)
-58.8609
172.829
75246
2018-12-01 00:11
Wed, 2019-01-30
VIS
1024 pixels (17 km)
3648 pixels (62 km)
0.017111 km/pixel
0.0172307 km/pixel

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