Mathematics – Logic
Scientific paper
Dec 2008
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008agufm.p42a..04l&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2008, abstract #P42A-04
Mathematics
Logic
5418 Heat Flow, 5430 Interiors (8147), 5480 Volcanism (6063, 8148, 8450)
Scientific paper
Mantle convection and plume decompression melting have been used to explain volcanism on present-day Mars in previous studies. Most of these studies assume single layer convection in Martian mantle. However, layered Martian mantle has been suggested by models of magma ocean and mantle overturn. According to these models, a dense layer of up to several hundred km may exist at the bottom of Martian mantle. The possible effects of layered mantle on early Martian volcanic and magnetic dynamo histories were explored before. In this study, we explore how the layered martian mantle affects mantle convection and magma production on present-day Mars. Layered mantle convection is inefficient, resulting in a reduction in the heat flow out of the core and a higher temperature at the core-mantle boundary relative to models with a single convecting layer. The low core heat flux may contribute to the absence of a magnetic dynamo on Mars, in agreement with observations. The magma production rates in models with one and two convective layers are similar, provided that the temperature at the interface between the convective layers in the two layer system is the same as the temperature at the core-mantle boundary in the single layer system. Thus, with layered convection, it still holds that the recent volcanism rate on Mars implies a thermal Rayleigh number of slightly less than 107 on present-day Mars. Our models also show that the deep, dense layer can be stable for geologically long periods of time and that the topography on the interface between the two mantle layers is quite small for plausible values of the density difference between the layers.
Kiefer Walter Scott
Li Qian
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