Thursday, August 30, 2007

Strange Martian feature not a 'bottomless' cave after all

A new image reveals a wall on this dark feature, suggesting it is a pit at least 78 metres deep (Image: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona)

From Newscienctist.com

An extremely dark feature on Mars is probably just a pit – not the entrance to a deep cavern that future astronauts could call home, a new image reveals.

The 150- by 157-metre feature was first noticed in an image taken by NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on 5 May 2007 using a camera called the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE).

Viewed from directly overhead, the dark spot showed no evidence of walls or a floor, leading some HiRISE scientists to suspect it was the opening to a cavern. The new image, however, suggests the feature is just a vertical shaft cutting into the surface. Taken on 8 August from a different angle, the image reveals a wall on the feature's eastern side.

thanks to Shaun Saunders for the post

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