Barchan Dunes
Caption:
28 April 2004
One of the simplest forms a sand dune can take is the
barchan
. The term, apparently, comes from the Arabic word for crescent-shaped dunes. They form in areas with a single dominant wind direction that are also not overly-abundant in sand. The barchan dunes shown here were imaged in March 2004 by the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) as it passed over a crater in western Arabia Terra near 21.1°N, 17.6°W. The horns and steep slope on each dune, known as the
slip face
, point toward the south, indicating prevailing winds from the north (top). The picture covers an area about 3 km (1.9 mi) across and is illuminated by sunlight from the lower left.
Cataloging Keywords:
Name |
Value |
Additional Values |
Target |
Mars |
|
System |
|
|
Target Type |
Planet |
|
Mission |
Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) |
|
Instrument Host |
Mars Global Surveyor |
|
Host Type |
Orbiter |
|
Instrument |
Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) |
|
Detector |
|
|
Extra Keywords |
Crater, Dune, Grayscale |
Acquisition Date |
|
Release Date |
2004-04-30 |
Date in Caption |
2004-04-28 |
|
Image Credit |
NASA/JPL/Malin Space Science Systems |
Source |
photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA05844 |
Identifier |
PIA05844 |