Image Credit: NASA/JPL/ASU

Context image credit: NASA/JPL/MOLA
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A terraced cliff steps down from the south to the north in this image, showing many successive layers of material now eroded and exposed to the wind. A relatively thick, bright layer comprises one of the lowest strata, appearing more fluted and scarred by the wind than upper layers. This is indicative of having either a smaller grain size or being less indurated than the layers above. Small bright bedforms near the terraces are probably composed of particulate material shed from this bright layer. Sand dunes are forming in the material accumulating at the base of the cliff.