Spectacular images of possible caves on Mars found by NASA spacecraft

William Atkins
Thursday, 07 June 2007 03:24

Science - Space

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) was launched on August 12, 2005, was inserted into orbit about Mars on March 10, 2006, and began its scientific mission in November 2006.

Using its High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera, the MRO spacecraft found a dark spot on Mars that measures about 100 meters (330 feet) in diameter. The dark spot is located in a bright dusty lava plain that is northeast of Arsia Mons, one of the four Tharsis volcanoes on Mars. The Tharsis area on Mars is a large volcanic upland found on the planet’s equator near the western end of Valles Marineris.

[FYI: According to the University of Arizona team that operates the HiRISE camera, it is considered the most powerful camera ever to take images of a planet other than the Earth.

To see over 1,200 images of Mars taken by the HiRISE camera, go to the Department of Planetary Sciences/Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (at the University of Arizona) website: http://hirise.lpl.arizona.edu/.]

The dark spot is considered by the MRO team members to be possibly a deep, dark cave. They say that it is unlikely that the possible cave was formed by any type of impact (such as an asteroid) because a raised rim and ejecta material (material ejected out from an impact hit) were not present. Because its color is so dark, it is thought that its walls are so deep, that bright sunlight on Mars cannot penetrate down to its bottom.

NASA’s 2001 Mars Odyssey was launched on April 7, 2001, and reached the planet Mars on October 24, 2001. In April 2007, team members from the Odyssey mission announced that its spacecraft, specifically its Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS), had spotted seven dark spots on the surface of Mars.

The seven spots were located near the equator. They are called Dena, Chloe, Wendy, Annie, Abbey, Nikki, and Jeanne. See them at The Planetary Society’s website "Windows onto the abyss: cave skylights on Mars".

The NASA website of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is http://marsprogram.jpl.nasa.gov/mro/.

The NASA website of 2001 Mars Odyssey is http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/odyssey/index.html.