18 September 2006
This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter
Camera (MOC) image shows a narrow channel on the upper east flank of
the martian volcano, Hadriaca Patera. Because it is located on a volcano,
most likely this channel was formed by lava, perhaps as a lava tube at
which the thin roof later collapsed. Large ripples of windblown sediment
now occur on the channel floor; their crests are generally perpendicular
to the channel walls, suggesting that winds blow up and down through
this channel.
Location near: 30.5°S, 266.2°W
Image width: ~3 km (~1.9 mi)
Illumination from: upper left
Season: Southern Autumn