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A captivating new clip illustrates what it might be like to glide over the Martian landscape, transitioning from orbit down to a fascinating region known as Ares Vallis. This visual journey is crafted from data collected by the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Mars Express mission and showcases the area where NASA’s Pathfinder spacecraft made its historic landing in 1997.
Credit: ESA/DLR/FU Berlin and NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS. Data processing/animation: Björn Schreiner, Image Processing Group (FU Berlin)
The video labels key highlights along the route, allowing viewers to appreciate the majestic sights of Mars as the camera smoothly glides over them. The journey takes place across Oxia Palus, an expansive area spanning over 300,000 square miles, where the renowned Ares Vallis channel is located.
The adventure commences with a view of Mars from space, where a rectangle outlines the focus area. As the camera dives in closer, the diverse terrain of the Martian surface becomes apparent, starting with the Pathfinder landing site, where the Sojourner rover conducted its explorations. Next, viewers are treated to a glimpse of the Ares Vallis channel, a natural feature extending over 1,000 miles, marking it as one of Mars’s most extensive outflow channels.
Channels like this are vital for researchers as they provide clues about ancient water flow on the planet’s surface. This information is instrumental in piecing together which regions could have been abundant in water and possibly conducive to life.
As the exploration advances, two craters come into focus. Named Masursky and Sagan, these craters also exhibit signs of past water activity; the rim of the Masursky crater shows erosion patterns likely caused by water from the adjacent Tiu Valles system.
Another remarkable feature within the crater is its disordered collection of rocks, known as chaos terrain. These unique landforms, characterized by their rugged appearance, are often indicative of the historical presence of water. As ESA explains, “The chaotic look is believed to result from sudden subsurface water release to the surface, leading to a loss of support that causes the terrain to slump, creating blocks of various shapes.”
Throughout the tour, additional craters are visible, many of which also provide evidence that they were once filled with water. The residual shapes left behind reveal the course water previously took, adding to our understanding of the Martian environment.
The journey concludes in the smooth Oxia Planum region, which is slated to host ESA’s Rosalind Franklin rover upon its anticipated launch in 2028, before the camera pulls away to showcase the entire captivating landscape.
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