Saturday, April 10, 2010

Faulted Layered Bedrock in Noctus Labyrinthus


A portion of this observation shows layered bedrock that has been faulted and tilted.

These layers were likely horizontal when the materials were first deposited, but are now tilted to high angles, approaching 90 degrees, so we get a good cross-sectional view from a bird's-eye view.

The layers have distinctive colors, textures, and thicknesses, so it is easy to correlate layers from place to place. That makes it easy to measure the offset along the many faults breaking the layers.

Photo credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

Note: The location of this image is Noctis Labyrinthus, which is located between Valles Marineris and the Tharsis bulge.

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