Oblique view of a ridge, three graben and a landslide
Oblique view of a ridge, three graben and a landslide
The digital topographical models derived from HRSC stereo image data make it possible to compute perspective views of the Martian landscape. These can often provide a much better visual understanding of geological phenomena and processes than a top view. This image is equivalent to a view from an aircraft that is tilted at an angle, looking down on a ridge some 2000 metres tall and intersected almost vertically by three graben structures: two very obvious graben to the right of the picture, and a smaller, less obvious graben to their left that does not run all the way through the image. Part of this smaller graben is also covered by an enormous fan-shaped area of rock debris emanating from a very obvious escarpment from which a massive landslip has occurred. The central graben also shows a striking furrow-like depression – presumably here the bottom of the graben has slumped into hollows that had formed beneath it.