Robby
03-11-2008, 11:42 AM
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0803/avalanche_hirise.jpg (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0803/avalanche_hirise_big.jpg)
An Avalanche on Mars
Credit: HiRISE (http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/), MRO (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/), LPL (U. Arizona) (http://wwwvims.lpl.arizona.edu/), NASA (http://www.nasa.gov/)
Explanation: What caused this sudden cloud of dust on Mars? An avalanche! The first avalanche (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0RWLxOFGLY) imaged in progress on another planet was recorded last month on Mars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars) by NASA's robotic Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/overview/). Visible in the above picture (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/gallery/press/20080303a.html), digitally rescaled, are several layers of white ice thawing over red rock (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070701.html), with darker colors toward the right indicated Martian soil (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040206.html) that mixed with lesser amounts of ice. As the cliff (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070723.html) of over 700 meters high was thawing (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap080303.html), falling ice crashed down raising plumes of ice and dust so thick they cast visible shadow (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070610.html)s. The scarp has slopes with grades greater than 60 degrees. The entire scene is illuminated from the upper right by the Sun. A thaw occurs each spring in the Northern Hemisphere (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020604.html) of Mars, as the warming climate causes solid carbon dioxide ice (http://www.metacafe.com/watch/286601/dry_ice/) to sublimate directly to vapor. Studying such avalanches allows planetary geologists to better understand soil (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil) configurations on Mars.
(Via NASA (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap080311.html))
An Avalanche on Mars
Credit: HiRISE (http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/), MRO (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/), LPL (U. Arizona) (http://wwwvims.lpl.arizona.edu/), NASA (http://www.nasa.gov/)
Explanation: What caused this sudden cloud of dust on Mars? An avalanche! The first avalanche (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0RWLxOFGLY) imaged in progress on another planet was recorded last month on Mars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars) by NASA's robotic Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/overview/). Visible in the above picture (http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/gallery/press/20080303a.html), digitally rescaled, are several layers of white ice thawing over red rock (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070701.html), with darker colors toward the right indicated Martian soil (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap040206.html) that mixed with lesser amounts of ice. As the cliff (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070723.html) of over 700 meters high was thawing (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap080303.html), falling ice crashed down raising plumes of ice and dust so thick they cast visible shadow (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap070610.html)s. The scarp has slopes with grades greater than 60 degrees. The entire scene is illuminated from the upper right by the Sun. A thaw occurs each spring in the Northern Hemisphere (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap020604.html) of Mars, as the warming climate causes solid carbon dioxide ice (http://www.metacafe.com/watch/286601/dry_ice/) to sublimate directly to vapor. Studying such avalanches allows planetary geologists to better understand soil (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil) configurations on Mars.
(Via NASA (http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap080311.html))