Coprates Chasma

Today's VIS image shows a cross section of Coprates Chasma. In this region the chasma has two sections – a deep, flat floored canyon at the top of the image (the northern cliff face is not visible in this image), and the second section below that separated by a large ridge. Paralleling it to the south runs a narrower and shallower chain of linked pits and depressions called Coprates Catena. Landslide deposits, layered materials and sand dunes cover a large portion of the chasma floor. The brighter materials at the top of the image are layered deposits. It is unknown how deep these canyon deposits were when they formed. The layering is only visible due to erosion, making it difficult to estimate the original thickness. While layered deposits can be found on the floor of Coprates Chasma, they are most commonly found along the lower elevations and at the bottom of the cliff faces in the canyon. Coprates Chasma is one of the numerous canyons that make up Valles Marineris. The chasma stretches for 960 km (600 miles) from Melas Chasma to the west and Capri Chasma to the east.

Orbit Number: 93111 Latitude: -14.0758 Longitude: 295.079 Instrument: VIS Captured: 2022-12-11 00:40

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NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.