Skip Navigation
menu

Images

Noctis Landslide

What triggered a Martian landslide? Landslides are common features in canyons on both Earth and Mars, and they happen the same way.

April 01, 2012

What triggered a Martian landslide?

Landslides are common features in canyons on both Earth and Mars, and they happen the same way. Erosion undermines a canyon wall until abruptly millions of tons of rock come crashing down. In the case seen here, the impact of a meteorite landing near the edge of the canyon may have done more than just blast a crater 6.5 kilometers (4 miles) wide. The impact may also have triggered the massive landslide, either at the time of impact or shortly after.

Credits

NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/HI-RISE

ENLARGE

Related

This global map of Mars was acquired on Aug. 2, 2012, by the Mars Color Imager instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
More
This global map of Mars was acquired on Aug. 2, 2012, by the Mars Color Imager instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.
Mars Weather Map, Aug. 2 (Labeled)
This HiRISE image shows a portion of interior layered deposits (ILD) in Juventae Chasma. Juventae Chasma is a large depression near the equatorial canyon system Valles Marineris.
More
This HiRISE image shows a portion of interior layered deposits (ILD) in Juventae Chasma. Juventae Chasma is a large depression near the equatorial canyon system Valles Marineris. The scene is along the top of a mound of layered deposits on the floor of Juventae Chasma. Dunes are seen in the low-lying, darker regions. Very fine layers are also seen (see subimage, approximately 1 km across). Understanding what kinds of materials formed the layers, how they were set in place, and how they have evolved will provide insight into Martian geologic history.
Interior Layered Deposits in Juventae Chasma
Martian gullies as seen in the top image from HiRISE on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter resemble gullies on Earth that are carved by liquid water. However, when they are observed with the additi...
More
Composition Data About Mars Gullies
Adding Composition Data About Mars Gullies
These two images show Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument data from two tracks in a part of Mars' Utopia Planitia region where the orbiting, ground-penetrating radar on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orb...
More
These two images show Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument data from two tracks in a part of Mars' Utopia Planitia region where the orbiting, ground-penetrating radar on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter detected subsurface deposits rich in water ice.
Radargrams Indicating Ice-Rich Subsurface Deposit
This image shows the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover and destinations scientists want to investigate.
More
This image shows the landing site of NASA's Curiosity rover and destinations scientists want to investigate.
Glenelg Intrigue
This image acquired on January 13, 2019 by NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, shows a cluster of dust devil tracks on the flat ground below the south polar layered deposits, but none on the layers ...
More
This image acquired on January 13, 2019 by NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, shows a cluster of dust devil tracks on the flat ground below the south polar layered deposits, but none on the layers themselves.
Following the Tracks
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Project Manager Jim Graf shakes the hand of Andrew Dantzler, Director of NASA's Solar System Division, after a successful orbit insertion on March 10, 2006. Fuk Li, Dire...
More
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission Team Members Celebrate Orbit Insertion Success
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission Team Members Celebrate Orbit Insertion Success
This image, taken with the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera, shows the transition between the "Murray Formation," in which layers are poorly expressed and difficult to tra...
More
This image shows a base map of Mount Sharp with the transition between the "Murray Formation," with the rover's old path marked in white and the new path marked in yellow.
Geological Transition
Well-Preserved Crater with Central Peak in Chryse Planitia
More
Well-Preserved Crater with Central Peak in Chryse Planitia
Well-Preserved Crater with Central Peak in Chryse Planitia
This view of layered rocks on the floor of McLaughlin Crater shows sedimentary rocks that contain spectroscopic evidence for minerals formed through interaction with water.
More
This view of layered rocks on the floor of McLaughlin Crater shows sedimentary rocks that contain spectroscopic evidence for minerals formed through interaction with water.
Layers with Carbonate Content Inside McLaughlin Crater on Mars
This image covers a region of Mars near Nili Fossae that contains some of the best exposures of ancient bedrock on Mars.
More
This image covers a region of Mars near Nili Fossae that contains some of the best exposures of ancient bedrock on Mars.
A Wild Assortment of Jumbled Rocks
Aram Chaos is a heavily eroded impact crater that contains jumbled blocks of material disrupted when large quantities of ice or water were catastrophically removed. The light toned sediments may ha...
More
Aram Chaos is a heavily eroded impact crater that contains jumbled blocks of material disrupted when large quantities of ice or water were catastrophically removed.
Aram Chaos (3-D)
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has been working on Mars since landing inside Eagle Crater on Jan. 25, 2004 (Universal Time; evening of Jan. 24, Pacific Standard Time).
More
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has been working on Mars since landing inside Eagle Crater on Jan. 25, 2004 (Universal Time; evening of Jan. 24, Pacific Standard Time).
Opportunity's First Decade of Driving on Mars
This artist's concept shows NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter mission over the red planet.
More
This artist's concept shows NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter mission over the red planet.
Artist's concept of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
This observation from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows a sand dune field in the Nili Fossae region of Mars. The dark lines swirling over the surface of the dunes are the tracks of dust devi...
More
This observation from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter shows a sand dune field in the Nili Fossae region of Mars. The dark lines swirling over the surface of the dunes are the tracks of dust devils.
Dust Devils on Mars
This image covers a region of Mars near Nili Fossae that contains some of the best exposures of ancient bedrock on Mars.
More
This image covers a region of Mars near Nili Fossae that contains some of the best exposures of ancient bedrock on Mars.
A Wild Assortment of Jumbled Rocks
Amazingly, this HiRISE image has captured at least four avalanches, or debris falls, in action.
More
Amazingly, this HiRISE image has captured at least four avalanches, or debris falls, in action.
Caught in Action: Avalanches on North Polar Scarps
There are steep scarps facing the poles of both hemispheres that expose thick (up to 100 meters or more) sections of nearly pure water ice.
More
There are steep scarps facing the poles of both hemispheres that expose thick (up to 100 meters or more) sections of nearly pure water ice.
Ice-Exposing Scarps
This image shows lava crumpled against the upstream side of an impact crater.
More
This image shows lava crumpled against the upstream side of an impact crater.
Lava Against an Impact Crater in Elysium Planitia
Although the season is late spring, carbon dioxide ice still covers much of the surface at this high latitude site.
More
Although the season is late spring, carbon dioxide ice still covers much of the surface at this high latitude site.
Icy Wonderland
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has revealed Martian rocks containing a hydrated mineral similar to opal. The rocks are light-toned and appear cream-colored in this false-color image taken by th...
More
NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has revealed Martian rocks containing a hydrated mineral similar to opal. The rocks are light-toned and appear cream-colored in this false-color image taken by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera. Images acquired by the orbiter reveal that different layers of rock have different properties and chemistry. The opal minerals are located in distinct beds of rock outside of the large Valles Marineris canyon system and are also found in rocks within the canyon. The presence of opal in these relatively young rocks tells scientists that water, possibly as rivers and small ponds, interacted with the surface as recently as two billion years ago, one billion years later than scientists had expected. The discovery of this new category of minerals spread across large regions of Mars suggests that liquid water played an important role in shaping the planet's surface and possibly hosting life.
Gemstone of the Year - Labeled
This composite graphic illustrates the use of the Shallow Radar instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for mapping underground ice-rich layers of the north polar layered terrain on Mars.
More
This composite graphic illustrates the use of the Shallow Radar instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for mapping underground ice-rich layers of the north polar layered terrain on Mars.
Radar Mapping of Icy Layers Under Mars' North Pole
These two images taken by the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars (CRISM) show Mars' two small moons, Phobos and Deimos, as seen from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's low orbit ar...
More
These two images show Mars' two small moons, Phobos and Deimos in color. Phobos is the bigger moon and it is at the top, while Deimos is the smaller moon and is at the bottom. Both are odd, potato-shaped.
CRISM Views Phobos and Deimos
These images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter show how the appearance of dark markings on Martian slope changes with the sea...
More
These images from the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter show how the appearance of dark markings on Martian slope changes with the seasons.
Seasonal Changes in Dark Marks on an Equatorial Martian Slope
This large outflow channel shows many characteristic signs that massive amounts of water have flowed through this area, including the teardrop and streamlined islands.
More
This large outflow channel shows many characteristic signs that massive amounts of water have flowed through this area, including the teardrop and streamlined islands.
Hebrus Valles (3-D)

You Might Also Like

The agency is asking the NASA community to work together to develop a revised plan that leverages innovation and proven technology.
More
NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs
NASA Sets Path to Return Mars Samples, Seeks Innovative Designs
NASA has proven powered, controlled flight is possible on other worlds, just as the Wright brothers proved it was possible on Earth.
More
After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends
After Three Years on Mars, NASA's Ingenuity Helicopter Mission Ends
The agency established the board in May 2023 to evaluate the technical, cost, and schedule plans prior to confirmation of the mission’s design.
More
NASA Releases Independent Review's Mars Sample Return Report
NASA Releases Independent Review's Mars Sample Return Report
A pair of quakes in 2021 sent seismic waves deep into the Red Planet’s core, giving scientists the best data yet on its size and composition.
More
NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core
NASA InSight Study Provides Clearest Look Ever at Martian Core
Ten sample tubes, capturing an amazing variety of Martian geology, have been deposited on Mars’ surface so they could be studied on Earth in the future.
More
NASA's Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot
NASA's Perseverance Rover Completes Mars Sample Depot
Filled with rock, the sample tube will be one of 10 forming a depot of tubes that could be considered for a journey to Earth by the Mars Sample Return campaign.
More
NASA's Perseverance Rover Deposits First Sample on Mars Surface
NASA's Perseverance Rover Deposits First Sample on Mars Surface