Sand
dunes fill the gaps in jumbled, chaotic terrain on Mars, as seen by the Mars
Reconnaissance Orbiter.
The
Iani Chaos region may have resulted from ancient floodwaters that carved the
haphazard channels and created irregular patches of rocks. The rocks also have
linear features that reflect wind erosion in a certain direction. Other
processes that could have helped form the rocks include volcanic eruptions,
lake deposition and accumulated wind-blown sand.
Stepped
layers that appear in certain places suggest a repeating cycle, which would
hint at wind-blown or lake-bed sediments slowly building up. NASA’s Phoenix
Mars Lander is currently examining the history
of water on Mars.
— NASA/JPL/University of Arizona and SPACE.com
Staff
Credit: NASA/JPL/University
of Arizona
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