Layers in Spallanzani Crater (context image)

This image shows light-toned layered deposits along the floor of Spallanzani crater, a 72 Km (about 45 mile) diameter crater located just South-East of Hellas Planitia.
These layered deposits may be remnant sediments once deposited within the crater. Mechanisms for sediment deposition include windblown debris, airfall volcanic ash, or sediments that accumulated in a lake on the crater floor.

The slopes are covered in debris, and not fallen plates or blocks from the plateau edge.
This suggests that the layers are composed of weak materials that are protected by a stronger, more coherent surface.

The crater is named after the 18th Century Italian biologist, Lazzaro Spallanzani (1729-1799).