A Peculiar Hole in Mars. Credit: NASA, MRO, HiRISE, JPL, U. Arizona
What made this strange hole on Mars? This area on Mars has many holes, giving the surface a look similar to Swiss cheese.
Most of these holes show the dark, dusty Martian ground underneath a layer of light-colored carbon dioxide ice that’s slowly disappearing.
But one hole stands out — it’s in the upper right, about 100 meters across, and seems to go deeper than the others. Scientists aren’t exactly sure how it formed, but one idea is that a meteor hit the surface and caused it.
This hole is especially interesting because it might lead to a large cave system below the surface. If that’s true, these caves could be protected from Mars’ harsh conditions, making them a possible place to find signs of life. That’s why these pits are important targets for future missions, including robots and even human explorers.
source APOD
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