Mare Ingenii

Mare Ingenii: This image is a spectacular oblique viewpoint, similar to what an astronaut in orbit would observe looking 58° from vertical. The swirls of bright material in the oblique image stand out from the dark mare surface, resulting from an albedo (brightness) contrast. Scientists are particularly interested in the cause of this albedo contrast; does it result from different minerals in the surface materials? One possibility is that the bright areas are less weathered than the darker areas, possibly due to a local magnetic field that shields the surface from the solar wind in the space environment.