Old Arabian Crater

June 2, 2003

NASA's Mars Global Surveyor shows an old meteor impact crater that was once buried and was then partially-exhumed from within the layered rocks on the floor of a much larger crater in eastern Arabia Terra on Mars.

MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-376, 30 May 2003

This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows an old meteor impact crater that was once buried and was then partially-exhumed from within the layered rocks on the floor of a much larger crater in eastern Arabia Terra. The erosion processes that began to exhume the crater, however, stopped some time ago, because today the entire area is covered by a blanket of dust. Avalanches of this dust have created dark streaks on the walls of the partly exhumed crater. This April 2003 image covers an area 3 km (1.9 mi) wide and is located near 20.9°N, 320.8°W. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the lower left.

Old Arabian Crater

Keep Exploring