Dunes and Ripples in Valles Marineris
Smaller light toned ridge-like ripples draped over the bright bedrock, while long dark sand dunes superpose the small ridges, indicating that the sand dunes formed more recently than the ridges. Earlier observations have shown that the small ridges, known as "transverse aeolian ridges" or TARs, appear to be fixed in place. They are typically found near the equator of Mars, in places where the winds alternate in direction over daily or seasonal cycles.
Image cutout is less than 5 km (3 mi) across and the spacecraft altitude was 266 km (165 mi). For full observation details including images with scale bars, visit the source link.
www.uahirise.org/ESP_025297_1730
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
Dunes and Ripples in Valles Marineris
Smaller light toned ridge-like ripples draped over the bright bedrock, while long dark sand dunes superpose the small ridges, indicating that the sand dunes formed more recently than the ridges. Earlier observations have shown that the small ridges, known as "transverse aeolian ridges" or TARs, appear to be fixed in place. They are typically found near the equator of Mars, in places where the winds alternate in direction over daily or seasonal cycles.
Image cutout is less than 5 km (3 mi) across and the spacecraft altitude was 266 km (165 mi). For full observation details including images with scale bars, visit the source link.
www.uahirise.org/ESP_025297_1730
NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona