The images that space devices such as the James Webb throw in Spain are undoubtedly treasures of the modern era. And we’re not just talking about the Webb; NASA has all kinds of satellites such as the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) that is in charge of observing Mars, the Red Planet and that from time to time makes overwhelming discoveries. One of the last corresponds to an image quite “unusual” of some sandy formations on the Martian surface.
According to a NASA statement, the MRO has managed to capture some images of sand dunes on the surface of Mars that are out of the ordinary. And it is that this image, captured thanks to the HiRise camera (High-Resolution Imaging Experiment) from the satellite, shows dunes which are almost perfectly circular.
As planetary geologist Alfred McEwen explains, sand dunes formed on Mars are commonplace. However, in this example “the dunes are almost perfectly circular, which is unusual.” Of course, they maintain some of the main features of the dunes previously seen on the Red Planet.
unusual sand dunes
This image is part of a series of images captured by the MRO to monitor the disappearance of frost at the end of the Martian winter. The image does not seem to collect traces of frost, something significant since the previous image already showed the surface covered by martian frost.
McEwen specifies that these dunes “are still slightly asymmetrical, with steep slip walls at the southern ends.” This, in the eyes of the academic, implies that the sand “generally moves to the south, but the winds can be variable.” The photographs, although recently published, They date from the end of November last year.
Uncropped image of dunes on Mars.
University of Arizona | POT
The image itself is impressive, although it is even more so if we add this unusual phenomenon captured by NASA’s MRO. The satellite’s HiRise was operated by the university of arizona and the project itself is managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
The photography of these dunes serves not only to obtain more data on the formation of these dunes on the surface of Mars, but also to be able to compare how these phenomena can occur differently on other planets. And it is that for example on Earth you can also see dunes in the deserts of the entire planet thanks to the action of the wind.
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