NASA Mars Picture of the Day: Sedimentary Rocks of Aram Chaos 02-04-2004

Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera

MGS MOC Release No. MOC2-626, 4 February 2004

NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems

Aram Chaos is a large meteor impact crater that was nearly
filled with sediment. Over time, this sediment was hardened
to form sedimentary rock. Today, much of the eastern half
of the crater has exposures of light-toned sedimentary
rock, such as the outcrops shown in this
Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC)
image. The picture is located
near 2.0°N, 20.3°W, and
covers an area 3 km
(1.9 mi) wide. Sunlight illuminates the scene from the 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.