NASA Mars Picture of the Day: Northern Plains Crater 12-29-2004

Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera

MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-955, 29 December 2004

NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Craters on the northern plains of Mars are not usually
found at the surface. Typically, they are filled and
buried just beneath it. The crater shown in this
Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC)
image is an example. The crater is located
near 50.3°N, 46.7°W. Dark streaks crisscrossing
the scene were formed by passing dust devils.
The picture covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) wide
and is illuminated by sunlight from the lower 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.