Changings... (CTX Frame - credits: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona)

HiRISE is monitoring the Residual Carbon Dioxide Cap on (or near) the South Pole of Mars to see how it changes over time.
Some of this Terrain contains many Pits, earning it the nickname "Swiss Cheese Terrain". One of our monitoring spots is over what looks like a deranged "Happy Face". If you look closely, you'll see many changes since the first HiRISE image, PSP_004000_0945, was acquired in 2007. The news is that the Pits have grown larger. When this Pit growth was first discovered, it was suggested to be an indication of climate change on Mars. However, we now suspect that the CO2 that sublimates from the Pit Walls recondenses on the nearby surfaces, so there is no net change in the total amount of frozen CO2.

Acquisition date: December, 30th, 2010
Mars Local Time (M.L.T.): 18:03 (Late Afternoon)
Latitude (centered): 85,7° South
Longitude (East): 6,5°
Spacecraft Altitude (or Range to Target Site): 247,6 km (154,8 miles)
Original image scale range: 24,8 cm/pixel (with 1 x 1 binning) so objects ~74 cm across are resolved
Map Projected Scale: 25 cm/pixel
Map Projection: POLAR STEREOGRAPHIC
Emission Angle: 0,2°
Phase Angle: 78,9°
Solar Incidence Angle: 79° (with the Sun about 11° above the Local Horizon)
Solar Longitude: 207,7° (Northern Autumn)