Large, Deep Caves Confirmed On Mars
Since Nick posted a link about this on back on April 2nd, new images of the surface of Mars have been obtained with a resolution of 25 centimeters per pixel from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. That’s pretty sharp. What they show are seven black holes with no bottom visible, which makes them deep.
What are the implications of this revelation? Of course, the Mars theorists/ Hoaglandites will have a field day, and they may have a point - up to a point. It does recall the musings of Mac Tonnies on the retreat of a supposed Martian civilization to the safety of underground life when the atmosphere deteriorated and the water dried up. Are these the remnants of underground cities, or just something like lava caves, which form when lava stops flowing through fissures and leaves large “tubes” in its wake? The hole in the picture is located on a “lava plain.” Someone should find out if the caves are near the Cydonia complex. That would certainly bring up some interesting issues.
Info for this article from the Planetary Society site, via the Anomalist.
Cave entrance on the flank of Arsia Mons
In this HiRISE image captured on May 7, 2007, a black spot mars the flank of Arsia Mons. The spot is most likely a skylight onto a subterranean cavern. Credit: NASA / JPL / U. Arizona
The hope for the HiRISE images was that we could see some details from inside the hole. But as you can see by the highly stretched version [visible at the website], there is absolutely nothing visible inside that hole. It’s black black black black black. HiRISE is a very sensitive instrument, and Mars’ dusty atmosphere scatters quite a bit of light around, so there is certainly light entering that cave hole and bouncing around the interior. But it seems that the cave is so big and so deep that almost none of the light that enters the cave comes out. It’s deep, and it’s big; the hole that we see really is just a skylight on a big subterranean room.
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May 26 2007 
May 28th, 2007 at 5:30 am
Since most vulcanism involves the expulsion of material from the sub surface outward there should be evidence of the volcanic all around that hole. Doesn’t really look like terran volcanic fields. But I am just speculating. Perhaps this is a sink hole? In which case that leads to other questions.
Jess
May 28th, 2007 at 8:27 am
Jess,
I suppose we just have to trust those who study Mars that this is indeed a lava field. It may not look as such from the satellite image, but practically the entire planet is covered in sand and dust, so this probably obscures the less prominent features.