DCS of Syrtis Major Sand Migration

Scaled Image

Image Credit: NASA/JPL/ASU

About this image

This image shows two representations of the same infrared image of craters and lava flow features in Syrtis Major. On the left is a grayscale image showing surface temperature, and on the right is a false-color composite made from 3 individual THEMIS bands. The false-color image is colorized using a technique called decorrelation stretch (DCS), which emphasizes the spectral differences between the bands to highlight compositional variations.
The prominent rim of the large crater at the top of the image is blocking migrating sand from entering the crater. This produces a very distinct compositional boundary between the pink/magenta basaltic sand and the green dust covering the crater rim and floor. Many of the smaller craters in this region have dust trails behind them, indicating the prevailing wind direction. At the top of the image, the prevailing wind direction is to the northwest, while at the bottom of the image, the prevailing winds have shifted towards the southwest.

Please see the THEMIS Data Citation Note for details on crediting THEMIS images. 

Context

Image ID: 
I01820006 (View data in Mars Image Explorer)
9.1583
68.4046
1820
2002-05-13 03:43
Mon, 2004-08-02
IR
320 pixels (31 km)
8368 pixels (839 km)
0.100324 km/pixel
0.099753 km/pixel

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