South Polar Residual Cap of Mars: Features Within, and Models of, MRO HiRISE Data

Details South Polar Residual Cap of Mars: Features Within, and Models of, MRO HiRISE Data South Polar Residual Cap of Mars: Features Within, and Models of, MRO HiRISE Data

Dec 2007

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2007agufm.p33a1018b&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2007, abstract #P33A-1018

Physics

5422 Ices, 5462 Polar Regions, 6225 Mars

Scientific paper

We report on observations by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) of the south polar residual CO2 cap of Mars and our related modeling efforts. HiRISE is currently acquiring continuous coverage of this deposit at spatial resolutions of up to 25 cm/px in three separate bands. Several previously undetected features in this CO2 landscape have been noted such as networks of linear ridges and some examples of mass wasting at the rims of pits within the ice. The thicker portions of the CO2 ice appear to be composed of roughly 10 layers. Previous MOC observations have shown that features within this landscape are evolving at meters per year. HiRISE observations will resolve the seasonal dependence of this expansion by the end of the Martian year. High resolution color data are currently showing that the seasonal frost is in the process of disappearing over exposures of the layers on the walls of the CO2 mesas. Although their ablation rates determine that they must be mostly composed of CO2 ice their color is much redder than expected which could possibly be due to dust contamination or grain-size effects. We have modeled the evolution of this CO2 landscape and reproduced its evolution as observed by previous spacecraft. These models have also successfully predicted some features visible at HiRISE resolution such as the linear ridges mentioned above. We report on these new observations and how they extend our current models. Model results have already suggested that the thick portions of this CO2 deposit are likely to be 50- 100 Martian year old, implying that the individual layers observed by HiRISE represent periods of time of order a few Martian years. Global dust storms occur with a similar frequency and may be modulating the behavior of the ice cap.

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