Ladon basin in full colour  The fractured features of Ladon
basin  2 August 2012  ESA’s Mars Express has observed the
southern part of a partially buried approx. 440-km wide crater,
informally named Ladon basin.  The images, near to where Ladon
Valles enters this large impact region reveal a variety of
features, most notably the double interconnected impact craters
Sigli and Shambe, the basins of which are criss-crossed by
extensive fracturing.  This region, imaged on 27 April by the
high-resolution stereo camera on Mars Express is of great
interest to scientists since it shows significant signs of
ancient lakes and rivers.  Both Holden and Eberswalde Craters
were on the final shortlist of four candidate landing sites for
NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory, which is due now to land in Gale
Crater on 6 August.  Large-scale overview maps show clear
evidence that vast volumes of water once flowed from the
southern highlands. This water carved Ladon Valles, eventually
flowing into Ladon basin, an ancient large impact