NASA Mars Picture of the Day: Martian Dunes

Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera

MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-857, 22 September 2004

NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

This Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) image shows dark, windblown sand dunes in a south mid-latitude crater near 49.5°S, 352.9°W. The elongated portions of these dunes indicate that, for some period of time during their development, there were two dominant wind directions involved. The most dominant of these winds blew from the south-southeast (lower right), as indicated by the presence of the steepest dune slopes on their northwest (facing upper left) sides. This image covers an area approximately 3 km (1.9 mi) across and is illuminated by sunlight from the upper left.

Malin Space Science Systems and the California Institute of Technology
built the MOC using spare hardware from the Mars Observer mission.
MSSS operates the camera from its facilities in San Diego, California.
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Mars Surveyor Operations Project
operates the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial
partner, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, from facilities in Pasadena,
California and Denver, Colorado.