10 August 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows
two mesas on the northern plains of Mars. "Mesa" is the Spanish word for
"table," and that is a very good description of the two elliptical
features captured in this MOC image. In both cases, the mesa tops and the
material beneath them, down to the level of the surrounding, rugged plain,
are remnants of a once more extensive layer (or layers) of material that
has been largely eroded away. The circular feature near the center of the
larger mesa is the site of a filled and buried impact crater.
Location near: 53.5°N, 153.5°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: lower left
Season: Northern Spring
