Doomed Moon

Phobos, the larger moon of Mars, has already taken a pounding. A collision with another large space rock gouged the crater at right, and created cracks through the moon that are evident on the surface. But Phobos' fate is even more violent. The moon is spiraling closer to Mars, and eventually the planet's gravity will pulverize it. This image, from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, was enhanced to bring out subtle variations in color on Phobos' surface. [NASA/LPL/MRO]