Phoenix_Geology_Features

I haven't seen many closeups of Phoenix posted here, and I am sure some of you have some very fine work waiting for presentation out there. This is a first attempt at a 4X closeup of the lander in shut-down mode, from Dec 21, 2008.
Slight alterations, but basically what the MRO HiRISE camera offers from the catalog color JP2.
I am going to present a few geological reference images here also, to give ourselves a perspective of the scene around Phoenix.
The Phoenix landed near a channel braided across the outer ejects margin of a large crater/dome as shown in the second image section, about 25% from the left edge of the second image.
The effective particular crater/dome is one of many circular features in the local scene. Here the image sections are enhanced to show the geological setting, and give a '3D' terrain display. The actual imagery is much more subdued and less obvious.
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A basic geology reference, mostly in IR(infra-red) band source information.
Phoenix is way-point #1.
The effective crater/dome is marked #6, to the right of center, near the bottom of the image. Only a part of the item is seen in the original, and this image.
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Source images from the HiRISE site by NASA, JPL, LPL, and the University of Arizona at Tucson, Arizona. The above are from the color JP2 large image file.
ESP_011268_2485

A few images of the Phoenix terrain and local geology. These are grayscale sub-images from the IR based 'red' large JP2 file.
The amount of surface texture causes the images to look like lace-work, despite the substantial cratering, slopes, and other elevation changes. The less detailed variations shows the Phoenix lander is situated near a channel which is comprised of a topographic margin established by the bright large crater on the left side of the main full frame image. At least two dark channels are following surface elevation changes and ejecta blanket erratic concentric rings from the bright impact crater. The amount of surface closeup texture and variation makes following the dark channels as a feature more difficult in closeups.

A considerable down-slope flow is recorded appearing to possibly have been a periodic or light volume ongoing process, as well as a massive chaotic single incidence. The HiRISE image lacks the closeup detail to show shallow local channel cutting, with the darker areas generally low but not much depressed in relative elevation. Unusual unique objects litter the surface partly buried by the local smaller terrain patterns. The dark paths are generally always relatively slightly low to the brighter materials.
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A altered view of the dark channel paths to the Phoenix lander from source areas at the bottom of the image in the rotation is seen here. If this were drainage down-slope the path would be in the vertical direction. Phoenix is located at about the orange arrow along the dark channel path, very close to the channel. I left a half inch distance to keep the details viewable. The relative darkness of the channel path is exaggerated in this image to show the connectedness of the curvilinear path braids as they flow along the former ejecta blanket margin topographic continuity. The appearance is of liquid erosion to our familiar association of path shaping to water channel cutting. The association to a liquid flow may not be valid, or it may be a subordinate aspect of the formation character. The crater bowls at the source area(bottom of the image) show a large missing volume if they were filled at some prior time, and some of the depressed channeled slopes show material slumping/erosion/removal with directional flow passage. Slumping without deep erosional depression of the passages.
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A larger context view of the surface textures. Periodic patches of patterned, or large polygon, surface which is relatively flat and appears less affected by the impact process, also seems to be slightly elevated from the general more chaotic terrain.
Size is 1 to 16, Rotated -29.1 degrees, sharpened to 1.96, DR 430 to 770.
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Below is a closeup of the Phoenix landing area with the dark channel near the center, Phoenix marked in all images as #1 waypoint.
The slumped or filled craters and the scalloped subsiding terrain with directional flow, all remain consistent with the major impact features, and a gravity path conditioning of any subsequent flow of possible liquids or other material. As the terrain is chaotic in smaller scale the actual gravity paths would not necessarily be simple or single in direction, currently, and over great time periods.
Rotation in this image was about -119.1 degrees, with the scene 90 degrees rotation from the alignment of the prior image. Here the channel is seen nearly horizontal, accommodating my limited screen size, to capture the full image path of the channel and associated material features, This is a fairly narrow range of tones which shows the shaded margins of 3D variation well. Slight elevation changes are better seen in these contrasty images. Actual materials variations in brightness are subdued and not as accurate as a wide dynamic range view.
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Other views of the area are on the same page of thumbnails with these at the image host, for a varied view of the scene. The arizona.edu/lpl/HiRISE image index page linked at the topic entry gives some very good views of the area, both in grayscale, and in color.

Many items of interest in the Phoenix area.
The new version of Google Earth, ie., '5.0', is a very fine method of moving across Mars for viewing subjects.
I'll present a few area photos tomorrow in the Phoenix zone.
Meanwhile, this is a first image of the dark mound near Phoenix at the lower right corner of the HiRISE image.
A small section of the sloped side of the mound, with a 'Thumbs Up', for all who can access the service. Many secrets of the area are waiting to be seen.
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As the resemblance to a baseball pitcher giving a 'thumbs up' gesture is rather difficult to visualize even in the two closeup images above, and, as the item is rather difficult to find even in Google Earth 5.0/Mars, I am giving a reference image of the Phoenix scene in the HiRISE source image ESP_011268_2485, with the Phoenix marked as waypoint #1 near the central/upper area of the scene, and the very dark mound in which the baseball pitcher is found located at the lower right corner. The Phoenix is situated on and margined by several multi-layered semi-liquid layered flows from various directions.
One or more flows originated at the very bright crater/mound on the left of the image.
Some material from the right side of the image has flowed toward Phoenix from the right side of the image margin.
The greatest volume and the deepest thickness of flow/layers has originated from outside the bottom margin of this reference photo, and the varied materials have all passed across the Phoenix lander touch-down spot at prior timing. The result was a very complex topographic surface with elevation differences and liquid/semi-liquid fluid flows varied in directionality within short distances.
The patterned rough surface shows fault movement adjustment offsets horizontally within short distances, with counter movements and changes in direction within meters to tens of meters distance measure at some areas, and no rigid surface faulting at other nearby surfaces where probably semi-fluid movement adjustments were less rigid or the fractures are below the resolution of the HiRISE camera detailing.
The scene is similar to a volcanic surface of rafted sections of rigid surface formed within a flow of semi-rigid subsurface materials moving apparently by gravity and by directional applied force.
I will supply closeups of sections where, the offsets are viewable,
burial of rigid polygons is only partial,
pit strings appear to be formed along fault/fracture stress lines with possible venting of dark material to the surface,
and, where channels are formed with casual meander of the channel lows along which liquids could have travelled if they could form at the surface at some prior geologic timing.
Those details of movement recorded will be a subsequent entry. Currently the overview of the dark mound which issued a considerable outflow will be the subject while defining the location of the 'Thumbs UP' feature with the associated baseball pitcher upper torso figure.

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A view of the actual location of the two images of the 'Thumbs Up' feature along the flank of the dark mound. The feature is very difficult to see. An extreme closeup is necessary. The slopes have blocked mass movement of lighter material from the lower side of the ESP_011268_2485 image and from a source beyond the HiRISE photo boundary. The impeded flowing material can be seen to have dominated the dark mound base at the source side, and has made a incursion along the dark mound along the sides, combining flows with the issuance of vented material from the top of the dark mound. Several flows are seen in the textural patterns down the sides of the dark mound.
At the other end of the images, down-slope along the path of flow movement, a semi-fluid surface has recorded in Lissajous translated patterns and periodic mounded peaks, a disrupting combined set of waves from a source near the dark mound and beyond the view in the HiRISE photo. The orange line marks the easily viewed pattern. While the image shows a curvature that would indicate a source close to the dark mound, the larger photo shows a larger radius to the pattern, giving a possible multiple source, or a larger single source with topographic variations.
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A light toned view of the transitions in tonality of the layered and shallow edges across the image as dark lines. The dark mound shows well as the entire scene is translated to a pattern of lighting gradation in very narrow dynamic rang. The flow movements and layers are shown while the gray-scale darkness changes are less obvious. The movement from the left(bright) side, and the right(dark) side are seen, with the lower right side incursion viewable as a third approach of mass burying original surface materials around the Phoenix landing spot.
The Phoenix has been situated at the coalescence of three primary flow approaches and all measurements and surface materials will reflect the origins of the surface debris as layered materials at some depth.
The lander was in s a low, sloped area where any liquids would have tended to drain apparently. As liquids could be questioned as having ever been present in the immediate lander spot, the low relative elevation may have been able to ices accumulating over seasonal and climatic variations.
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Similar views of the dark mound area and the flows, linear mounded peaks, and general directionality of material in movement.
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More images again tomorrow. This was a very active location at times. the possibility of liquids in small flooding as ice melted throughout these slopes intrigues me as a location for some evidence of sediments at lows.

The new Google Earth v.5.0 is a solution to many problems for viewing Mars from orbit. If they can see too also including the MER Micro Imager, PanCam, and other images at close range viewing scale as well, this could be a browser for classrooms, the public common person, and researchers and other professionals in the writing of the Natural History of Mars.
Perhaps someday we can even have a 'Wikipedia/Mars' as an entire website devoted to the public writing of the story of Mars past and current detailed mapping.

A overview of the Google source image from the HiRISE collection, used for many of these images.
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Many of the observations I have made in the prior entries can be seen in the details of this small view of the HiRISE image(s). The dark mound has in this Google Earth image been clipped and is only partly viewable in the lower right corner area.
The many layers formed in the primary movements from the two main masses is clearly seen even at this reduced size and lower resolution.
Phoenix is situated between the two main masses, and is dominated by the blanketing of materials by these and other major geological events.
The materials in the events was active and in movement for a period of time after the primary occurrences.
Venting of volatiles and chemistry, was occurring after the events, and, at the dark mound, appears to have been occurring before and during the major blanketing events.

A diversion to a closeup of the Phoenix from the HiRISE scene in the Mars autumn taken 12/21/2008. This is a 8X size view, I believe, and I am still hoping someone can enter a better processed view of the lander closeup. I hope we can see some icing on the mission before the years end, detected in a subsequent HiRISE image.
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First image from Google Earth 5.0/USGS/NASA.
Second of these images from the IAS viewer.
Image credits to the USGS,NASA,LPL,and Arizona.edu, for the original source images.
Credits to Google Earth, IAS/ITT, XNView, VMN, and others, who have provided me with the tools for viewing and presenting the sub-images.

Detailed images from the Google placemarked area later today.

An image from a area near the 'push-pin' placemark on the Google Earth5/Mars image above in entry #4, reveals, left to right, a polygon solid plate partly buried and possibly slightly tilted by the massive overlay of material from the foreground. The polygon had great strength during the burial, was clear at one side, and was a older feature than the overburden material which is much newer or more active. Movement from the foreground to the Phoenix landing site proper.
The second feature is a string of dark spots along a linear controlled path which is not straight. Probably an additional polygon type depression with dark periodic eruptions of some type of material. The largest spot is appearing filled with dunes/ripples still appearing darker than the surrounding light materials, and the middle well shaped 'hole' has a raised annulus with the appearance of a pit hole as a center. Possibly venting along a source of volatiles such as water or CO2 'dry ice'?
The far right item is a domed layered crater shape with a ridge along the periphery, and a depressed center at the apex of the dome.Explaining these and other objects in the Phoenix 'neighborhood' would aid me in constructing a history to this scene, if anyone wants to make an effort at the process.

A t bottom is a separate image from the same area near the placemark which shows channels which are meanders of a depressed and darker type. The channels and the zone around the pit string are darker, as in a differing material as a semi-liquid or liquid/fluid type transfer over time, and with a erupting atmospheric geysering from the pits at some timing still visible as a surface effect.
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A side angle view of the 'pit string'.
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A view of the darker tones in the pits, same approach incidence angle.
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Domed crater with central pit on the right of the pit strings in this view, differing approach incidence angle/direction. Pits around the Phoenix are very common, and much of the overlying material was em-placed after the formation of the polygons apparently.
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A view of the winding channels which are common all around the Phoenix lander. The complex terrain has caused a series of primary directions of downslope travel, with much complexity to the interactions of transport or movement.
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Previewing this last image above for the first time, I find the depth of 3D effect in the scene is masked by some problem I hadn't expected. I'll rework the image and reissue it to give a clear view of the depressed channels which have steep walled sides, and which cut through some features.
The movement or slope was left to right, and rear forward, I believe, in this section near Phoenix.

An image from the Phoenix showing the bright character of the depressed lows in the fracture/polygon/patterned ground of the landing area. Some of the brightness may be frost, but the HiRISE imaging of the area shows in IR(Infra-Red) sensors a routine darker fracture fill appearance at some distance. The variation in the general appearance is one of many alternative views which becomes apparent as the information accumulates about the landing site.
The image was from Sept., 2008, during the warmer aspect of the seasonal fluctuation in the low elevation of the Phoenix. Daily frost was at times apparent to some degree, but this was a mid-day photo in appearance, submissive to mid-day heating and radiation energy.

Ring mold crater types and the association with subsurface water ice deposits on Mars. Also a mention of the relatively young age of some of the polygon/patterned ground features that are considered associated with water and other ices on Mars.

As the Phoenix area was both active in relatively recent geologic timing, and was altered by events, The ices at the near subsurface are likely to have been present at very ancient subsurface depths as well.
A possible source of mobilization of solids and pit type venting would have been a probable water ice rich subsurface during the major events in past timing.

Along the area in the foreground of the Phoenix lander, situated on the right side sloped deposits is this small dark pit which has exuded a huge volume of liquid erosive and very fluid surface quantity of material which flowed downslope for some distance from the single source vent.
Venting of gases and liquids was common at the Phoenix area for some time, and led to surface trough formations and eroded surface features.
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A closeup view of the same dark pit/mound which has issued large quantities of liquids onto the surface of the Phoenix lander site on Mars. The liquids were stable for a time, and aided in eroding the channels which scour the Phoenix site.
As to whether the subsurface was awash with liquids or whether the event was short lived is rather difficult to know.
Faulting, movement,, fracturing, and other sorting caused a series of erupting geysers or vents which were at times organized along the weakness zones, other times were at specific singular locations.
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Additional closeup and overview of the Phoenix scene where the slopes have issued vented liquids in open surface exposed flows downslope at points around the lander site. The erosion has carved channels into the landscape.
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This is rotated and the vertical orientation changed to show the vent as close to a overhead view as possible.
A very round mounded ringed vent source.
The liquids flowed straight downward in this orientation. You can equate this view to the other views to imagine the changes in orientation.
The ring is about four to five meters diameter.
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An overview of the scene relating the Phoenix lander to the small dark liquid source vents, and the other dark mounds and polygon/patterned ground around the area.
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I spent a few minutes looking at some of these images on a small 15" LCD screen, an older model, and I found the lower DR(dynamic range) and dimming conditions gave a bad view of a few of the items. I am reissuing these to be sure readers can see the items in a full tonal range.
I'll try to keep a older smaller setup here to check what I upload and use before issuing posts. Criticism is always helpful to me here.
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A lower contrast and more normal view of the dark ringed vent. This is nearly unaltered from Google Earth 5.
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A closeup low contrast view of the same item. The upper ring crest is about three meters diameter, the lower outer periphery is about 4 1/2 meters diameter.
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A high contrast lighter view of the ring showing what appears to be a possible dark pit at the bottom. Due to the higher contrast, I can only guess about the precise type of venting and whether this would be a simple dark minimum, or an actual vent opening. It looks like a scene which would be seen as a particulate covered porous or now sealed vent with no current open passage. We may never see the scene any closer. Tones in the originals give an impression of current gas/steam issuing from the pit bottom, but that is extremely unlikely. Glare or background noise diffusion may be producing the appearance. The drainage has solid positive elevated content of a dark non-reflective flow material, but most of the passages and distance is a depressed elevation path with evacuated surfaces.
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I would guess that the darkest low spot would not be as restricted as it appears in a non-reflective material. Can this be a simple hole at the bottom of the ringed pit?
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The instrumentation on the Phoenix lander exposed during use is shown here as it appeared on Mars. This is an altered version of a HiRISE color image JP2. Unfortunately this removes all realism to the colors shown, and the entire lander is now of false color.
The equipment is very real, and the details are fairly accurate. Other related slight variations are loaded to the linked image host on this thumbnail linked page.
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While these are severely altered, the content of targeted subjects can be extracted from images with effort in some items. Most detail is lost in other aspects of the image, and it cannot be a technique for large scale use across a landscape.
Some of the variations of this image at the host link are more palatable and accurate than others.

I'll have additional vent and geology details soon.

Dana, HiRISE snapped a shot on a kind of mound on the marsian southpole as well recently:

Resolution is kind of poor (for HiRISE) but closeup of this feature looks a bit strange also interesting the "Spider Trough Network" in this area of course

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