Wrinkle Ridges in Eastern Meridiani Planum

This wrinkle ridge crosses through a mound of layered material that's been exposed by erosion.

This observation poses an excellent opportunity to look at the internal structure of a wrinkle ridge. We can compare the topography and internal structure of this wrinkle ridge at this location to exposures in other terrain to see if the local bedrock has a noticeable effect on ridge morphology or growth.

The layers also represent stratigraphic markers that we know were once continuous - examining faults that cross-cut and offset layers can yield good information about the amount and direction of movement that took place along that fault.

This is a stereo pair with ESP_020850_1845.

Photo credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

Note: This image is located in eastern Meridiani Planum; the closest named feature to this site is Schiaparelli Crater to the southeast.