Water, ice and gravity 'gnaw' at the rim of Deuteronilus Cavus
Water, ice and gravity 'gnaw' at the rim of Deuteronilus Cavus
Deuteronilus Cavus is a depression approximately 120 kilometres wide and over 2000 metres deep, located at the transition from the southern Martian highlands to the northern lowlands. It formed more than three and a half billion years ago from an asteroid impact. Since then, numerous geological processes have altered the crater, such as groundwater that emerged from the crater walls and, as seen in this image, eroded valleys into the surrounding highland. The resulting material was deposited within the depression ('Cavus') as a consequence.
