![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/A_crater_at_the_boundary_article_20260417_105200.jpg\")
<\/a> *A crater at the boundary of the ash and dust. Credit – ESA\/DLR\/FU Berlin*<\/p>\nSo what is causing them to move? The short answer is, most likely, wind. Aeolian (i.e. wind-driven) processes are likely either blowing the dark ash across the landscape, or they are scouring away the lighter, rust-colored surface dust to expose the dark layers of ash they had hidden for hundreds of millions of years. It\u2019s hard to tell with just a series of pictures, but either explanation seems plausible.<\/p>\n
But the creeping ash wasn\u2019t the only shocking feature in these new images. Scattered around the ash blanket were vaguely rounded pits with wavy edges known as \u201cscalloped depressions.\u201d These form when either the planet\u2019s climate shifts or the topsoil is blown away and exposes subsurface ice, which then sublimates, causing the ground above it to become unstable and collapse. We already know that Utopia Planitia is holding about as much sub-surface water as Lake Superior, so this is more of a confirmation than a new finding, but shows how prevalent water is right under the Martian surface.<\/p>\n
Another image from the new set highlights a 15-kilometer wide impact crater sitting in the middle of the ash blanket. This crater is also surrounded by an \u201cejecta blanket\u201d of lighter material that was thrown out by a meteorite strike, while inside the crater there are squiggly lines that indicate the slow, glacial movement of ice. Located just outside the crater, a series of shadowy tectonic ditches known as \u201cgrabens\u201d stretch up to 20 kilometers away, indicative of a part of Mars\u2019 crust that is being pulled apart.<\/p>\n
These new images help dispel the myth that Mars doesn\u2019t change. It features a constant scouring of wind, former volcanic activity, subsurface ice, and crust being pulled apart. That doesn\u2019t sound like a dead planet – or at least not much of one. As we continue to watch the Red Planet from orbit, we\u2019ll undoubtedly find more areas undergoing these types of \u201crapid\u201d geological changes. Maybe one day humanity will even be able to see them in person – just on slightly longer time scales than we\u2019re used to.<\/p>\n Learn More:<\/p>\n ESA – Ash Creeps Across Mars<\/a><\/p>\n UT – Martian Volcanoes Could Be Hiding Massive Glaciers Under A Blanket of Ash<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a> *A crater within the ash blanket. Credit – ESA\/DLR\/FU Berlin*<\/p>\n