Mass balance processes on the north polar cap on Mars

Details Mass balance processes on the north polar cap on Mars Mass balance processes on the north polar cap on Mars

Apr 2003

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2003eaeja.....2996h&link_type=abstract

EGS - AGU - EUG Joint Assembly, Abstracts from the meeting held in Nice, France, 6 - 11 April 2003, abstract #2996

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The permanent north polar cap is thought to consist of H2O ice with some dust and CO2 ice. The cap has formed over millions of years, and its topography at present is a result of geologic and climatic processes. A characteristic feature of the cap is a spiraling pattern of scarps and troughs organized around the pole. Horizontal or north-facing areas appear white, while the scarps expose dark layers. The alternating white polar ice and exposed layers suggest that the cap interacts with the atmosphere through deposition and sublimation processes and plays an active role in the current water cycle on Mars. The spiraling scarps and troughs are thought to be formed in a combination of sublimation, wind effects, deposition and ice flow. We use an ice sheet model to study these mechanisms, their effects and relative importance under the present climatic conditions. The characteristics suggest that the spiraling structure is a result of sublimation combined with wind effects. Ice flow alone would close the troughs within 100-1000 kyrs. Sublimation rates must exceed the flow rates and be in the order of cm/year in order to keep troughs open. We estimate the total amount of sublimation to be in the order of 10^11 to 10^12 kg per Martian year. The result indicates that the cap accounts for the observed annual input of water vapor to the northern hemisphere atmosphere.

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