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South Polar Terrain

Jan. 15, 2006
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows layers exposed by erosion on a slope in the martian south polar region. Both polar caps on Mars are underlain by a complex stratigraphy of layered material.

15 January 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows layers exposed by erosion on a slope in the martian south polar region. Both polar caps on Mars are underlain by a complex stratigraphy of layered material; the Mars Polar Lander -- lost in December 1999 -- was designed to have provided some insight as to the nature and composition of the layers in the southern hemisphere.

Location near: 86.9°S, 180.5°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: upper left
Season: Southern Summer

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