The Mars Express orbiter, which arrived on the Red Planet in 2003 and has been orbiting it ever since, has returned beautiful new images. Launched by the European Space Agency (ESA), the orbiter has captured images of ice-related features in the Utopia Planetia region of Mars, which includes the largest known impact basin in the solar system. The European Space Agency (ESA) shows the combined image below, which is one of three large basins in the northern hemisphere of Mars with a diameter of about 3,300 km.
What sets this region apart?
The European Space Agency says Utopia Planitia is an interesting ice-rich region where ice has been seen on and below the surface. Surprisingly, the ice buried in the area lies at great depths, which was confirmed by monitoring the new craters and craters using radar.
Photo: ESA
In describing its features, the agency noted that to the left and right of the two craters are large, smooth surfaces known as ‘covered sediments’. This deposit is a thick layer of material that is rich in ice and dust which makes the surface smooth. Interestingly, the same layer was deposited as snow when Mars’ axis of rotation was tilted more than it is now, about 10 million years ago, according to the European Space Agency.
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Photo: ESA
The second largest crater in the image is more interesting because it displays a network of so-called ‘brain topography’. It is so named because of the intricate patterns and projections found on the surface of the human brain. The European Space Agency said this resulted from material being distorted and tilted in concentric patterns. To the right of the second-largest crater, you can see a dark-colored area that has taken on its shape now that the ice-rich soil has shrunk and cracked at low temperatures.
“These features are the result of melting ground ice or turning into gas, which then weakens and collapses the surface. On closer inspection, layered sediments can also be seen in and around this scalloped basin,” the agency said in a statement. As for Mars Express, it has been photographing the Martian surface for about two decades now and mapping its minerals, determining the composition and circulation of the red planet’s atmosphere.
Photo: Twitter / @ESA
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