By: ArtAlienTV-Gigapans
Image: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona ⧉
Subject: ArtAlienTV
License: Copyright, All Rights Reserved

Uploaded: 26 May 2025
Last Updated: 26 May 2025

960 megapixels
18,048 x 53,196 pixels
60.2 in X 177.3 in at 300dpi
0 pixels per inch

This image shows several mesa-like features in the Noachis Terra region of Mars. A mesa is a steep-sided, flat-topped mountain or hill. While the larger features in this image are elevated areas of land surrounded by cliffs, the smaller “mesas” seem to be saucer-shaped in that the interiors of the mesas are at a lower elevation than the surrounding cliffs. The saucer-like shape of these features is unusual and begs the question of how they formed, and it’s not apparent from this single image. The HiRISE team plans to acquire a second picture to provide stereo coverage, from which we can create a 3D digital elevation model. This elevation model may help us figure out how these strange mesas formed. Written by: Chris Okubo (26 May 2025)