Constraints on the history of open-basin lakes on Mars from the timing of volcanic resurfacing

Details Constraints on the history of open-basin lakes on Mars from the timing of volcanic resurfacing Constraints on the history of open-basin lakes on Mars from the timing of volcanic resurfacing

Dec 2011

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011agufm.p31e1737g&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2011, abstract #P31E-1737

Mathematics

Logic

[5410] Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets / Composition, [5419] Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets / Hydrology And Fluvial Processes, [5464] Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets / Remote Sensing, [5480] Planetary Sciences: Solid Surface Planets / Volcanism

Scientific paper

A catalogue of 30 open-basin lakes on Mars [1] have been identified as volcanically resurfaced based on distinct morphology and mineralogy. Associated morphologies include: (1) smooth floor deposits with lobate margins; (2) high crater retention, especially at small crater sizes; (3) wrinkle ridges on the smooth floor deposits; (4) embayment of basin perimeters and older, stratigraphically underlying deposits; (5) "moat" structures surrounding the edge of the basin, suggesting subsidence of the volcanic fill [2]; (6) high thermal inertia based on THEMIS nighttime IR data [3]; and (7) roughness signatures characteristic of smooth, volcanic material [4]. In addition to studying the morphology of the open-basin lakes, the mineralogies of the floor deposits have been analyzed using orbital spectroscopy data returned from the CRISM and OMEGA instruments. This analysis reveals that these resurfaced basins contain strong mafic mineral signatures isolated to their interiors when clear spectroscopic signatures are visible. An analysis of the CRISM and OMEGA spectra reveal the presence of both olivine and pyroxene, based on distinct mineral absorptions at 1 and 2 μm, in many resurfaced basins; however, olivine appears to be the dominant mafic mineral in the majority of these units. These mineral signatures provide further evidence for the volcanic resurfacing of the studied open-basin lakes. Additionally, the studied open-basin lakes lack any evidence for mineralogical and morphologic features that would be expected for lava-water interaction. This indicates that these open-basin lakes were completely devoid of surficial water at the time of volcanic resurfacing. Ages for the resurfacing events have been determined through crater size-frequency distributions and indicate that the process of volcanic resurfacing occurred throughout the Hesperian and into the Amazonian, with the majority of basins being resurfaced in the earliest parts of the Hesperian, near the Noachian-Hesperian boundary. These ages are consistent with the mineral assemblage of olivine, low-calcium pyroxene and high-calcium pyroxene, characteristic of Hesperian and Amazonian volcanic units [5]. The lack of evidence for lava-water interaction in these paleolake basins coupled with resurfacing ages near the Noachian-Hesperian boundary have important implications for both fluvial activity and the emplacement of volcanic plains units at this critical juncture in martian history.

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