|
Explanation: Why is there a spiral around the North Pole of Mars? Each winter this pole develops a new outer layer about one meter thick composed of carbon dioxide frozen out of the thin Martian atmosphere. This fresh layer is deposited on a water-ice layer that exists year round. Strong winds blow down from above the cap's center and swirl due to the spin of the red planet -- contributing to Planum Boreum's spiral structure. The featured image is a perspective mosaic generated in 2017 from numerous images taken by ESA's Mars Express and elevations extracted from the laser altimeter aboard NASA's Mars Global Surveyor mission.
|
January February March April May June July August September October November |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings, and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris. Specific rights apply.
A service of: LHEA at NASA / GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
Based on Astronomy Picture
Of the Day
Publications with keywords: Mars
Publications with words: Mars
See also:
- APOD: 2025 September 28 Á Leopard Spots on Martian Rocks
- APOD: 2025 July 15 Á Collapse in Hebes Chasma on Mars
- APOD: 2025 June 29 Á Dark Sand Cascades on Mars
- APOD: 2025 June 22 Á A Berry Bowl of Martian Spherules
- APOD: 2025 June 15 Á Two Worlds One Sun
- Perseverance Selfie with Ingenuity
- Deimos Before Sunrise