Image Credit: NASA/JPL/ASU

Context image credit: NASA/JPL/MOLA
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Detailed information on this image is available at the THEMIS Data Releases website.

 

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

 

This image is located in the northwestern portion of the Tharsis Rise at about 12 N and 125 W (235 E). What is immediately noticeable in this image is the series of linear features that are called graben. These features are associated with crustal extension which results in a series of up and down blocks of crust that run perpendicular to the direction of the extension. Images of Mars have shown a large number of these tectonic features concentrated on or near the Tharsis region. The Tharsis region is an enormous bulge that causes major tectonic disruptions across the planet when it tries to settle down from its height and reach equilibrium with the rest of the planet. The graben in this image display a number of preferential directions indicating that the crustal stresses that caused the graben have changed over time. By examining the cross-cutting relationships between the features, it is possible to reassemble the history of the area.