"George" wrote in message
news:VnXOd.52227$4I2.8878@attbi_s01...

"DrPostman" wrote in message
...
Can someone help me explain what this is, instead
of the weird and wild speculations that are going on
about it?
http://www.marsanomalyresearch.com/e...iedtubesys.htm

I did a search on the Malin Space Science Systems web site for this image, and
could not find it. However, I did find it on the Mars Global Surveyor site.
Here is a link to the original image:

http://ida.wr.usgs.gov/html/m12004/m1200441.html


The description on the page says "Sample trough with dark floor in S polar
terrain". Unfortunately, I think you need to see images on either side of
this image (especially to the west) to get a clear idea of exactly what this
feature is. On the same page is a Viking image of the same area. It has a
wider perspective, and it appears to be a trough that widens out to the west,
so it may not be as straight-sided as it might appear from that single image.
I think that without more images of this area, it is just another case of
someone making more out of it than it actually is. I don't have time to
search for a matching adjacent image, if it even exists. It certainly doesn't
appear to me to be artificial.

By the way, what is the temperature at the Martian south pole? About -120 C, or
so in the winter?