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.&nbsp;

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.&nbsp;The lava that flowed from Arsia Mons, a large volcano here, gave birth to Daedalia Planum.&nbsp;

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.

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/science/supermassive-black-hole-on-a-killing-spree-is-using-dead-star-remains-as-weapon-766308">Supermassive black hole on a killing spree is using dead star remains as weapon</a>

Previously, the European Space Agency’s Mars Express spacecraft took a wide view of the volcanic site, capturing its varied and unusual terrain.

<h2>How did a Japanese Zen garden form on Mars?</h2>

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.&nbsp;

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.&nbsp;

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.

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. 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. Also Read: Supermassive black hole on a killing spree is using dead star remains as weapon 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.

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

NASA's Curiosity rover is currently in the twelfth year of its mission to investigate Mars. Till now, it has reached several places where no other rover has gone before.

NASA's Curiosity rover is currently in the twelfth year of its mission to investigate Mars. Till now, it has reached several places where no other rover has gone before. Recently, the Curiosity rover's adventures brought it to Gediz Vallis. a winding and boulder-choked channel some scientists believe is the desiccated bed of an ancient river. They will try to investigate more about its past and find out how the landform came to be in the first place. The Curiosity rover was originally slated for a two-year mission. However, it continues to trawl the Martian surface. It has provided several new insights about the red planet and its environment. The rover's findings have led scientists to believe that life might have once lived or still lives on Mars. Since 2014, the rover has been driving up the slopes of Mount Sharp, which towers 3 miles (5 kilometres) above the rover's initial landing location in Gale Crater. Mount Sharp and the rest of Mars would've been significantly wetter billions of years ago than it is today. However, Mars has dried up over time and the wind and remnant water has eroded the mountain into the layers Curiosity can see today. ALSO READ | Travelling 650 million light-years, a mysterious signal possibly from a star corpse has reached Earth According to scientists, some force carved the Gediz Vallis channel on the mountain's slope as it was in the process of drying up. Although it's possible that wind created Gediz Vallis, the channel's sides are steeper than scientists would expect from a wind-carved vale. There's a high chance that the channel spotted by Curiosity on Gediz Vallis' floor was formed by landslides from higher up the mountain, which could have deposited boulders and other rocky debris. Another intriguing prospect is that it was formed by the flow of liquid water. "If the channel or the debris pile were formed by liquid water, that's interesting. It would mean that fairly late in the story of Mount Sharp, after a long dry period water came back, and in a big way," said Ashwin Vasavada, Curiosity's project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, in a statement. The Curiosity rover will spend several months exploring the channel, not just to study the Martian history but also to learn more about what lies beyond. As it is unable to climb Mount Sharp, the best way for the rover to investigate the area is by looking up from the channel, allowing scientists to gain insights into what lies ahead. (With inputs from agencies)

NASA’s Curiosity rover starts exploring possibly dried-up ancient water body on Mars

A rock resembling the logo from Star Trek was discovered by NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars. NASA's long-running Curiosity captured the image of a Mars rock that looks similar to the iconic delta-shaped Starfleet emblem that officers wear on their uniforms in the sci-fi series.

A rock resembling the logo from Star Trek was discovered by NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars. NASA's long-running Curiosity captured the image of a Mars rock that looks similar to the iconic delta-shaped Starfleet emblem that officers wear on their uniforms in the sci-fi series. While it is illogical to say that a Starfleet landing party walked near Curiosity's roving grounds, Star Trek fans are thrilled to see the symbol on the Red Planet's surface. An amateur astronomer, Stuart Atkinson, spotted the Star Trek symbol and joked about it on X. He wrote, "I bet the Star Trek fans on the @MarsCuriosity team smiled like Cheshire Cats when they saw this new image appear on their screens." To this, an X user replied, "This must be their head office in mars.." ALSO READ | Rhesus monkey cloned using new technique different from what was used for Dolly the sheep NASA's Curiosity rover has been on Mars since 2012 and continues to capture and investigate the life there. Currently, it is climbing a mountain nicknamed Mount Sharp (Aeolis Mons) as part of a mission to analyse the layers entrenched in it to know how water flowed on Mars several years ago. In September 2023, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory officials said, "Different layers of Mount Sharp represent different eras of Martian history. As Curiosity ascends, scientists learn more about how the landscape changed over time." The statement added that the rover was in a sulphate-packed zone, which might be "the highest elevation layer it will ever visit." ALSO READ | Chinese startup develops coin-sized nuclear battery that can last up to ‘50 years without charging’ According to the mission's blog, the rover captured the image of the Starfleet symbol when it was about to do "contact science on a flat block of dark-toned bedrock." The blog stated that one of its goals is to study the "composition and texture of the dark bands we've been observing from orbit" using various instruments. After the Curiosity rover's success at the Gale Crater, NASA sent a follow-up rover mission, named Perseverance, to the Jezero Crater on Mars in 2020. Perseverance aims to hunt for evidence of ancient life on the Red Planet. NASA also aims to launch another mission to bring the caches of rocks collected by Perseverance. However, funding and technology have pushed the expected return date to 2031. (With inputs from agencies)

Mars rock resembling iconic Star Trek symbol snapped by NASA’s Curiosity rover

Scientists surmised that a meteorite impact was the origin of this earthquake on Mars because the planet does not have the plate tectonics mechanism, which causes earthquakes on Earth. However, a search for an impact crater turned up nothing, which helped scientists determine that the earthquake was actually generated by tectonic activity—rumbling within the planet—and provided them with more insight into what causes Mars to tremble.

Scientists surprised by source of largest quake detected on Mars

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

NASA’s Curiosity rover starts exploring possibly dried-up ancient water body on Mars

Mars rock resembling iconic Star Trek symbol snapped by NASA’s Curiosity rover

Scientists surprised by source of largest quake detected on Mars