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Picture of the day - June 18, 2005
The "Happy Face" Crater On Mars
Photo courtesy of NASA.
The planet Mars is one of the most intriguing bodies in our
solar system
for several reasons. For starters, it is one of our closest planetary neighbors -
only Venus gets
closer to Earth
than Mars.
Another thing that makes Mars so interesting is the fact that it's so much like
our own planet. It has an atmosphere, water (in the form of ice) and rocky soil
that looks a lot like what you would find in parts of the desert southwest
region of
the United States.
One of the most obvious differences between Mars and Earth is the
appearance of their craters. On earth, steady geological change and the presence
of vegetation makes most
craters difficult to discern unless you're looking down at them from a high
altitude (from a spacecraft for example). But on Mars, there is no visible
vegetation, and geological
changes typically take place at a much slower pace. These factors make easily recognizable craters
"last" a lot longer than they do on Earth.
Today's picture, taken by the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, features one of
Mars' most interesting craters: the "Happy Face" crater (officially
known as Galle). This distinctive crater was formed when a large meteor impacted the Martian
surface and debris from the impact apparently fell into place in such a way
that it formed the markings of a happy face.
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