Arsia Mons

[Jalpha]

So you can see in some images from the ESA that it looks almost as though a volcano is erupting on Mars. Arsia Mons I think it is.



There is some debate currently as to what has caused this cloud formation. It is not impossible for volcanic activity to occur on Mars. Most people are looking for other explanations.

Sometimes when Mars air has a high amount of water vapour or dense co2 and a strong wind pushes this air up into much colder air very quickly. This causes the vapour to condense and crystalise into ices, creating a cloud.

Maybe we will find out what this was for sure in a few weeks or maybe it will remain a mystery for some time.

[AntiBlitz]

A repeated weather phenomenon occurs each year near the start of southern winter over Arsia Mons. Just before southern winter begins, sunlight warms the air on the slopes of the volcano. This air rises, bringing small amounts of dust with it. Eventually the rising air converges over the volcano's caldera and the fine sediment blown up from the volcano's slopes coalesces into a spiraling cloud of dust that is thick enough to observe from orbit. The spiral dust cloud over Arsia Mons repeats each year, but observations and computer calculations indicate it can only form during a short period of time each year. Similar spiral clouds have not been seen over the other large Tharsis volcanoes, but other types of clouds have been seen. The spiral dust cloud over Arsia Mons can tower 15 to 30 kilometres (9.3 to 18.6 mi) above the volcano.

A study using a global climate model found that the Medusae Fossae Formation could have been formed from ash from the volcanoes Apollinaris Mons, Arsia Mons, and possibly Pavonis Mons.

[shubla]

at first i thought it was like picture of some of your bodypart

[Jalpha]

Haha, yea. Back of my retina.

A study using a global climate model found that the Medusae Fossae Formation could have been formed from ash from the volcanoes Apollinaris Mons, Arsia Mons, and possibly Pavonis Mons.

It's a very interesting part of Mars. The volcanic activity was so intense in that region that the volcanoes grew so heavy that they sank into the ground, creating huge cracks in the surrounding landscape.

The Valles Marineris is proposed to have been formed by volcanic activity under a thick layer of ice. This created such an intense landslide of water and mud that it carved that huge rift into the side of Mars.