Martian water erosion. Gullies and channels on the surface of Mars thought to indicate the presence of liquid water in its recent history. They are th

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Martian water erosion. Gullies and channels on the surface of Mars thought to indicate the presence of liquid water in its recent history. They are thought to have been formed by groundwater seepage and surface runoff. The lack of small impact craters, common elsewhere on Mars, implies that they are young features. This means that liquid water may still exist just below the surface of Mars, which would provide a viable habitat for life. These features are in the Noachis Terra region in Mars' southern hemisphere. This image, three kilometres wide, was taken by the Mars Orbiter Camera on the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft orbiting Mars. Data analysed in 2000.

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Size: 2334px × 3500px
Photo credit: © NASA/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: astronomy, camera, channels, cosmology, erosion, geology, geomorphology, global, gullies, gully, hydrology, imagery, mars, martian, mgs, moc, nasa, noachis, orbiter, planet, planetary, satellite, science, seepage, surveyor, terra, water