Astronomy Picture of the Day
February 26, 2015

Another unusually-looking Surface Feature of Ganges Chasma
Another unusually-looking Surface Feature of Ganges Chasma

Credits: NASA/JPL/Arizona State University (ASU) - Credits for the additional process. and color.: Dr Paolo C. Fienga/Lunar Explorer Italia/IPF

In this (once again) beautiful VIS image, taken by the NASA - Mars Odyssey Orbiter on December, 14th, 2002, and during its 4.434th orbit around the Red Planet, we can see another small portion of the huge Canyon known as Ganges Chasma.


In this case, what we are looking at is an Elongated Surface Depressio which might have been caused by a Collapse Event (even though the highly eroded Rocky Outcrop that we can clearly see right inside of such a Depression, becomes VERY hard to explain if we accepted the simple "Collapse Theory"). The only thing that we - as IPF - are (relatively speaking) sure of, is that we are not looking at a Crater (neither Primary, nor Secondary). The simplest explanation (which, usually, is the correct one) tells us that this is a natutral and original (---> not created by the occurrence of any Catastrophic Event) configuration of the Floor of Ganges Chasma.


But, of course, we do not know and we may never be certain that the aformentioned "simplest" explanation is the correct one. Please, notice also the complete lack of Impact Craters in this Area, as well as the highly uneven Erosional Activity which affected the Landscape that has been pictured here.


Latitude (centered): 6,76774° South
Longitude (centered): 310,83800° East
Instrument: VIS


This image (which is an Original Mars Odyssey Orbiter falsely colored and Map-Projected frame published on the NASA - Planetary Photojournal with the ID n. PIA 19214) has been additionally processed, magnified to aid the visibility of the details, contrast enhanced and sharpened, Gamma corrected and then re-colorized in Absolute Natural Colors (such as the colors that a normal human eye would actually perceive if someone were onboard the NASA - Mars Odyssey Orbiter and then looked down, towards the Surface of Mars), by using an original technique created - and, in time, dramatically improved - by the Lunar Explorer Italia Team.



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