The so called "Face on Mars" can be seen slightly above center and to the right in this THEMIS visible image. This 1.8-mile (3-kilometer) long knob, located near 10 N, 40 W, was first imaged by the Viking spacecraft in the 1970's and was seen by some to resemble a face carved into the rocks of Mars. Since that time the Mars Orbiter Camera on the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft has provided detailed views of this hill that clearly show that it is a normal geologic feature with slopes and ridges carved by eons of wind and downslope motion due to gravity. A similar-size hill in Phoenix, Arizona resembles a camel lying on the ground, and Phoenicians whimsically refer to it as Camelback Mountain. Like the hills and knobs of Mars, however, Camelback Mountain was carved into its unusual shape by thousands of years of erosion. The THEMIS image provides a broad perspective of the landscape in this region, showing numerous knobs and hills that have been eroded into a remarkable array of different shapes. Many of these knobs, including the "Face", have several flat ledges partway up the hill slopes. These ledges are made of more resistant layers of rock and are the last remnants of layers that once were continuous across this entire region. Erosion has completely removed these layers in most places, leaving behind only the small isolated hills and knobs seen today.

Many of the hills and ridges in this area also show unusual deposits of material that occur preferentially on the cold, north-facing slopes. It has been suggested that these deposits were pasted on the slopes, with the distinct, well-defined boundary on their upslope edges being the highest point of this pasted-on layer. Alternatively, these unique features could be the result of the slow downslope motion of the surface layer, possibly enhanced by the presence of ground ice. In this model the top layer of material has separated from the sub-surface near the crest of the slope and moved downslope, creating the rounded boundary seen at the top of the detached layer. In several cases, such as in the large knob directly south of the "Face" these deposits occur at several different heights on the hill, providing evidence that downslope motion may be the more likely explanation. In either case, ground ice likely plays an important role in the formation and preservation of these deposits because they only occur on the cold slopes facing away from the Sun where ground ice is more stable and may still be present today.