Physics
Scientific paper
Dec 2008
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2008agufm.p41a1345w&link_type=abstract
American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2008, abstract #P41A-1345
Physics
5415 Erosion And Weathering, 5419 Hydrology And Fluvial Processes, 5464 Remote Sensing, 5470 Surface Materials And Properties
Scientific paper
Approximately 150 sinuous ridge (SRs) segments of various morphologies -- including 'thin', 'flat', or 'multilevel' - are found in the Aeolis/Zephyria Plana region of Mars, where most of them are being exhumed from within the western Medusae Fossae Formation. Thin SRs are interpreted to be inverted fluvial channels. Flat SRs are interpreted to be inverted floodplains of meandering channels. Multilevel SRs, comprised of thin SRs superposed on flat SRs, are interpreted to be inverted channels superposed on inverted floodplains (Burr et al. in revision). Here, we present paleodischarge values of these features using measurements made on THEMIS visible wavelength images (res. 18 meters per pixel) from the Mars Odyssey spacecraft. For those SRs interpreted to be inverted channels (including both individual thin SRs and the thin SRs superposed on flat SRs in multilayer morphologies), we measured SR length, width, sinuosity, and meander wavelength. For those SRs interpreted to be inverted floodplains of meandering rivers (including both individual flat SRs and the flat SRs subjacent to thin SRs in multilayer morphologies), we measured SR meander belt width. These measurements were then used in various empirical equations, based on Earth data, for determining discharge, with scaling for Martian gravity. The average discharge of the 18 SRs for which likely valid measurements could be obtained is 27 cubic meters per second. These data, in conjunction with the inferred age of the Medusae Fossae Formation, indicate that there was geomorphically effective surface flow of water at the equator during the late Hesperian to early Amazonian epoch. These results may provide data for future research involving climate modeling and give a more detailed account of the history of water on Mars.
Burr Devon M.
Howard Alan D.
Wendell Kimberly D.
Williams Rosa M.
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