Sunday, September 1, 2013

Layered Deposits in Ceti Mensa


This basin in Ceti Mensa exposes concentric rings in the sedimentary layers. Dark sand ripples and textures in the bedrock suggesting wind scouring are also apparent.

Wind is a powerful, erosive force, transporting fine-grain sediments that can shape topography and expose darker material underneath the surface. One such feature of wind-scour on Mars is in Gale Crater, where scouring has created a stair-step pattern.

This is a stereo pair with PSP_009460_1745.

Photo credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

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