Images
Radargram (labeled)
September 22, 2009
This is a labeled radargram from the Shallow Radar instrument on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, showing a cross-section of Mars' north polar cap, based on time lags of radio-wave echoes returning from different layers. The penetrating radar reveals icy layered deposits overlying a basal unit in some areas. The vertical dimension in the cross-section is exaggerated one-hundred-fold compared with the horizontal dimension. The vertical scale bar is one kilometer (3,281 feet). The horizontal scale bar is 100 kilometers (62 miles).