Patches of Snow on the Red Planet | NASA

Patches of Snow on the Red Planet | NASA

Patches of Snow on the 

Red Planet

In early Martian summer, at the time NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter acquired this image, the dunes are almost free of their seasonal ice cover. Only pockets of ice protected in the shade most of the day remain. The North Pole of Mars is surrounded by a vast sea of sand dunes. In this dune field, the dunes are covered by a seasonal cap of dry ice in the winter.

Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona

Last Updated: June 5, 2018

Editor: Yvette Smith