The Mare Australe quadrangle is one of a series of 30 quadrangle maps of Mars used by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Astrogeology Research Program. The Mare Australe quadrangle is also referred to as MC-30. The quadrangle covers all the area of Mars south of 65°, including the South polar ice cap, and its surrounding area. The quadrangle's name derives from an older name for a feature that is now called Planum Australe, a large plain surrounding the polar cap. The Mars polar lander crash landed in this region.
Image of the Mare Australe Quadrangle (MC-30). The region includes the South Polar ice cap. The central part is mainly a permanent residual ice cap surrounded by layered and troughed terrain which is, in turn, encircled by heavily cratered terrain.
Star burst Channels caused by escaping gas, as seen by HiRISE. Star burst channels, also called spiders, may be about 500 meters in diameter and 1 meter deep.
Spider on the second Martian day of spring, as seen by HiRISE
Some spider 14 Martian days later, as seen by HiRISE. Notice increased dark fans caused by outgassing of carbon dioxide and dark material.
The planet Mars has two permanent polar ice caps. During a pole's winter, it lies in continuous darkness, chilling the surface and causing the deposition of 25–30% of the atmosphere into slabs of CO2 ice (dry ice). When the poles are again exposed to sunlight, the frozen CO2 sublimes. These seasonal actions transport large amounts of dust and water vapor, giving rise to Earth-like frost and large cirrus clouds.
North polar cap in 1999
South polar cap in 2000
Layers exposed.
Close view of layers exposed.