'Japanese zen gardens' appear on Mars in volcano-filled Tharsis region

NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft has clicked the photo of a region on the red planet that looks like a Japanese dry zen garden. It recently snapped the Daedalia Planum from orbit where the spectacular site is present.

The MRO team shared the photo in an image-of-the-day feature on Oct 7 and wrote, "This terrain looks as if it was raked into furrows like a Japanese dry garden."

The Tharsis region on Mars was once a volcanic region where several volcanoes still stand.The lava that flowed from Arsia Mons, a large volcano here, gave birth to Daedalia Planum.

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The MRO team also likened the photo to fingerprints, pointing out bright boulders arranged in curving rows. Upon closer inspection, one can see the whorl-like patterns in the landscape.

"Some process has evidently sorted and segregated the larger boulders from the finer soil,” the team said. “Exactly what that process is presents a perplexing puzzle," the MRO team stated.

Notably, nowhere else on Mars has such a pattern been ever seen.

The image was taken from an elevation of 17,900 feet. The Tharsis region doesn't have any active volcanoes today. But the region has intrigued scientists for years.

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Previously, the European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft took a wide view of the volcanic site, capturing its varied and unusual terrain.

How did a Japanese Zen garden form on Mars?

The MRO team says vibrations or freeze-thaw cycles can cause such a pattern to form. Japanese Zen gardens are created by raking sand or gravel into curving patterns alongside rocks, trees and plants. The team points to the concept of "grain size convection" where grains certain vibrations or freeze-thaw cycles can separate grains of different sizes.

Something similar is likely happening with the Daedalia Planum boulders and soil, the team said. "Seismic shaking of Daedalia Planum could take place if the interior of Tharsis is still active and rumbling."

Notably, the Reconnaissance Orbiter has been orbiting Mars since 2006 and has send several images since then.

Mars has become the biggest topic of interest among not only astronomers but also people like Elon Musk who want to see humans reach the red planet in the coming years.