Landslide in Zunil Crater

This color image shows a portion of the southeast inner wall of Zunil, a geologically recent (less than about 10 million years old) well-preserved 10-kilometer impact crater.

The color and albedo patterns indicate that a landslide occurred here very recently -- too recently to have been re-covered by dust. The landslide could have been triggered by a Marsquake or a small impact event.

Monitoring Mars for changes such as this will help us to better understand active processes. The color image has north down, which also places downhill down and helps us to interpret the topography. However, we are in fact looking down from directly above the crater.

Photo credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona