HiRISE | Mesas of Layered Sedimentary Rocks in Valles Marineris (ESP_092088

NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

Mesas of Layered Sedimentary Rocks in Valles Marineris
ESP_092088_1695 Science Theme: Geologic Contacts/Stratigraphy

Valles Marineris, like the Grand Canyon in northern Arizona, provides a spectacular look at the geologic history via layered sediments that get older with depth. This image covers a tiny fraction of Valles Marineris, revealing layers with different colors and textures that were deposited in different environments.

Written by: Alfred McEwen (1 May 2026)

Acquisition date
19 March 2026

Local Mars time
15:21

Latitude (centered)
-10.306°

Longitude (East)
291.418°

Spacecraft altitude
260.8 km (162.1 miles)

Original image scale range
52.7 cm/pixel (with 2 x 2 binning) so objects ~158 cm across are resolved

Map projected scale
50 cm/pixel and North is up

Map projection
Equirectangular

Emission angle
3.9°

Phase angle
53.3°

Solar incidence angle
50°, with the Sun about 40° above the horizon

Solar longitude
247.0°, Northern Autumn

For non-map projected images
North azimuth: 97°
Sub-solar azimuth: 344.5°

JPEG
Black and white
map projected  non-map

IRB color
map projected  non-map

Merged IRB
map projected

Merged RGB
map projected

RGB color
non-map projected

JP2
Black and white
map-projected   (184MB)

IRB color
map-projected   (107MB)

JP2 EXTRAS
Black and white
map-projected (76MB)
non-map           (126MB)

IRB color
map projected (29MB)
non-map           (110MB)

Merged IRB
map projected (191MB)

Merged RGB
map-projected (175MB)

RGB color
non map           (102MB)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
B&W label
Color label
Merged IRB label
Merged RGB label
EDR products
HiView

NB
IRB: infrared-red-blue
RGB: red-green-blue
About color products (PDF)

Black & white is 5 km across; enhanced color about 1 km
For scale, use JPEG/JP2 black & white map-projected images

USAGE POLICY
All of the images produced by HiRISE and accessible on this site are within the public domain: there are no restrictions on their usage by anyone in the public, including news or science organizations. We do ask for a credit line where possible:
NASA/JPL-Caltech/UArizona

POSTSCRIPT
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The HiRISE camera was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corporation and is operated by the University of Arizona.