NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter interplanetary station has captured a fascinating new image of arthropods in one of the craters on the Red Planet. These are landscape patterns, also called spiders on Mars.

“Arthropods” was filmed in May 2022. But the picture only reached Earth this week.

It shows a crater with two notable features: dark formations that resemble clusters of spiders and geometric polygonal shapes that closely resemble dry soil.

Arachnids reveal the history of natural processes on Mars. These patterns result from the sublimation of ice beneath the surface. Similar formations have been observed before in other parts of the planet.

Although “spiders” look truly fascinating, polygonal formations are no less interesting for science. Previously, researchers had discovered similar forms prone to the freezing and thawing cycles of water in the cold Earth environment. Therefore, future studies may help to better understand the climatic conditions and distribution of ice on Mars. Source